Plywood Chair DCW by Charles Eames for Evans, 1950s

Although their ubiquitous leather lounge might be more recognizable, there’s arguably no chair that better embodies the design ethos of Charles and Ray Eames (1907–78; 1912–88) than the DCW dining chair. It was introduced at New York City’s Museum of Modern Art in a 1946 exhibition titled “New Furniture Designed by Charles Eames.” (Ray was notably absent from the exhibition title, despite being a full collaborator on the work.) 

In its design, construction and manufacturing, the DCW is pure Eames. It was born of functionality and comfort, crafted in a shape that the ever-inquisitive Eameses decided would provide optimal support for a large number of people. “We found that comfort depended more on the perfect molding to the body shape than it did on the way the bone structure was supported,” Charles noted in a 1954 film on the piece. “If the structure was supported properly, the hard and rigid material, like molded plywood, can provide a remarkably high degree of comfort.”

This proper support is the result of the chair’s five distinct parts: a pair of two-legged bases, a bentwood seat, a bentwood back and a long piece of bentwood that connects each of these. Such construction allows for a certain flexibility in movement between the seat and the back without requiring any type of complicated adjustment mechanism.

The Eameses developed the DCW while tinkering with the “Kazam! Machine,” a mechanism they invented to press and mold wood veneer. In their Los Angeles apartment, the couple would place a sheet of wood veneer into the machine, then top it with a layer of glue. After repeating these steps 5 to 11 times and ensuring the layers were set in place, the Kazam! Machine was clamped shut and a bicycle pump inflated a balloon to press the layers into their molded shape. Charles and Ray then cut the mold and sanded each finished shape by hand. 

The Kazam! Machine was a direct result of Charles and Ray’s determination to conceive an efficient, inexpensive means of production. Plywood, too, was a significant choice. Not unlike the molded plastic with which the Eameses would experiment, plywood was relatively cheap and easily available, rendering it optimal for the kind of democratic design the couple championed.

The Eames DCW chair has appeared (and continues to appear) in interiors by top designers all over the world. Today, it remains a top seller for Herman Miller — with equal credit given to Charles and Ray.

No other business of its kind did more than the Herman Miller Furniture Company to introduce modern design into American homes. Working with legendary designers such as Charles and Ray Eames, George Nelson and Alexander Girard, the Zeeland, Michigan-based firm fostered some of the boldest expressions of what we now call mid-century modern style. In doing so, Herman Miller produced some of the most beautiful, iconic and, one can even say, noblest chairs, sofas, tables and other furniture ever.

Founded in 1923, Herman Miller was originally known for grand historicist bedroom suites: heavily ornamented wood furniture that appealed to a high-minded, wealthier clientele. The company — named for its chief financial backer — began to suffer in the early 1930s as the Great Depression hit, and D.J. De Pree, the company’s CEO, feared bankruptcy. In 1932, aid came in the form of Gilbert Rohde, a self-taught furniture designer who had traveled widely in Europe, absorbing details of the Art Deco movement and other modernist influences. After persuading De Pree that the growing middle class required smaller, lighter household furnishings, Rohde set a new course for Herman Miller, creating sleek chairs, tables and cabinetry that were the essence of the Streamline Moderne style.

Rohde died suddenly in 1944. The following year, De Pree turned to George Nelson, an architect who had written widely about modern furniture design. Under Nelson’s leadership, Herman Miller would embrace new technologies and materials and audacious biomorphic forms. 

Some of the pieces the company produced are now emblems of 20th century American design, including the Eames lounge chair and ottoman and Nelson’s Marshmallow sofa and Coconut chair. Such instantly recognizable furnishings have become timeless — staples of a modernist décor; striking, offbeat notes in traditional environments.

Find a range of vintage Herman Miller office chairs, desks, coffee tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.