Vintage Herman Miller Eames Highback Leather Softpad Office Chair
View Similar Items
Vintage Herman Miller Eames Highback Leather Softpad Office Chair
About the Item
- Creator:Charles and Ray Eames (Designer),Herman Miller (Maker)
- Design:
- Dimensions:Height: 39.5 in (100.33 cm)Width: 23.25 in (59.06 cm)Depth: 20 in (50.8 cm)Seat Height: 20 in (50.8 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1980s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. The chair is in very good vintage condition with no rips or dryness to the leather. Some signs of age and use including some scuffs on the corners of the backrest. Metal parts are all very clean. See pictures for details.
- Seller Location:Media, PA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU6914233649762
Charles and Ray Eames
Charles Eames and Ray Eames were the embodiment of the inventiveness, energy and optimism at the heart of mid-century modern American design, and have been recognized as the most influential designers of the 20th century.
As furniture designers, filmmakers, artists, textile and graphic designers and even toy and puzzle makers, the Eameses were a visionary and effective force for the notion that design should be an agent of positive change. They are the happy, ever-curious, ever-adventurous faces of modernism.
Charles (1907–78) studied architecture and industrial design. Ray (née Beatrice Alexandra Kaiser, 1912–88) was an artist, who studied under the Abstract Expressionist painter Hans Hofmann. They met in 1940 at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in suburban Detroit (the legendary institution where Charles also met his frequent collaborator Eero Saarinen and the artist and designer Harry Bertoia) and married the next year.
His technical skills and her artistic flair were wonderfully complementary. They moved to Los Angeles in 1941, where Charles worked on set design for MGM. In the evenings at their apartment, they experimented with molded plywood using a handmade heat-and-pressurization device they called the “Kazam!” machine. The next year, they won a contract from the U.S. Navy for lightweight plywood leg splints for wounded servicemen — they are coveted collectibles today; more so those that Ray used to make sculptures.
The Navy contract allowed Charles to open a professional studio, and the attention-grabbing plywood furniture the firm produced prompted George Nelson, the director of design of the furniture-maker Herman Miller Inc., to enlist Charles and (by association, if not by contract) Ray in 1946. Some of the first Eames items to emerge from Herman Miller are now classics: the LCW, or Lounge Chair Wood, and the DCM, or Dining Chair Metal, supported by tubular steel.
The Eameses eagerly embraced new technology and materials, and one of their peculiar talents was to imbue their supremely modern design with references to folk traditions. Their Wire chair group of the 1950s, for example, was inspired by basket weaving techniques. The populist notion of “good design for all” drove their molded fiberglass chair series that same decade, and also produced the organic-form, ever-delightful La Chaise. In 1956 the Eames lounge chair and ottoman appeared — the supremely comfortable plywood-base-and-leather-upholstery creation that will likely live in homes as long as there are people with good taste and sense.
Charles Eames once said, “The role of the designer is that of a very good, thoughtful host anticipating the needs of his guests.” For very good collectors and thoughtful interior designers, a piece of design by the Eameses, the closer produced to original conception the better, is almost de rigueur — for its beauty and comfort, and not least as a tribute to the creative legacy and enduring influence of Charles and Ray Eames.
The collection of original Eames furniture on 1stDibs includes chairs, tables, case pieces and other items.
Herman Miller
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 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. As you can see on 1stDibs, such instantly recognizable furnishings have become timeless — staples of a modernist décor; striking, offbeat notes in traditional environments.
- Vintage Lightolier Style Cantilevered Mid-Century Floor LampBy Lightolier, Gerald ThurstonLocated in Media, PAA stunning vintage floor lamp with an adjustable cantilevered design and enameled metal frame. A brass chain connects to the shade and allows the lamp head to be raised or lowered. G...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Floor Lamps
MaterialsAluminum, Brass
- Vintage Moller Model #62 Teak Wood Armchair by Niels Otto MøllerBy Niels Otto Møller, J.L. Møllers MøbelfabrikLocated in Media, PAAmong the most stylish and iconic chairs that money can buy, this Model #62 Scandinavian armchair by Niels Otto Moller is a midcentury Danish modern Classic. With a soft upholstered ...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsTeak
- Richard Schultz 1966 Collection Outdoor 3-Seat SofaBy Richard SchultzLocated in Media, PARichard Schultz was commissioned to design the 1966 collection by Florence Knoll who, after retiring to Florida, wanted outdoor furniture that could withstand the corrosive ocean air...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsAluminum
- Rare 1971 Clifton Karhu Japanese Woodblock Print Titled "Karasuma Street, Kyoto"By Clifton KarhuLocated in Media, PAA Finnish-American who lived and died in Japan, Clifton Karhu (1927-2007) devoted himself to the art of woodblock printmaking and is today considered one of the foremost masters of t...Category
Mid-20th Century Japanese Mid-Century Modern Prints
MaterialsPaper
- 1960s Hundevad Rosewood Danish Modern Modular Wall UnitBy Poul HundevadLocated in Media, PAA gorgeous 1960s Hundevad modular wall unit in rosewood complete with shelves, brackets, case pieces, and even the original paper catalog...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Shelves and Wall Cabinets
MaterialsRosewood
- Rare 1971 Clifton Karhu Japanese Woodblock Print Titled "Winter Garden"By Clifton KarhuLocated in Media, PAA Finnish-American who lived and died in Japan, Clifton Karhu (1927-2007) devoted himself to the art of woodblock printmaking and is today considered one of the foremost masters of t...Category
Mid-20th Century Japanese Mid-Century Modern Prints
MaterialsGlass, Wood, Paper
- Mid Century White Leather Office Chairs by Eames for Herman MillerBy Herman Miller, Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Detroit, MIThe Aluminum Group Management office chair designed by Charles & Ray Eames for Herman Miller is from the Eames Aluminum Group Collection. These distinctive chairs resulted from the E...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs ...
MaterialsAluminum, Steel
- Mid Century Black Leather Office Chair by Eames for Herman MillerBy Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames, Charles EamesLocated in Detroit, MIThis authentic Eames for Herman Miller Soft Pad Management Height black leather office chair from the Aluminum Group Collection was manufactured in the 2000s. This classic mid centur...Category
Early 2000s American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
MaterialsAluminum, Steel
$2,300 Sale Price20% Off - Mid Century Cream Leather Office Chair by Eames for Herman MillerBy Herman Miller, Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Detroit, MIThis authentic Eames for Herman Miller Soft Pad Management Height cream leather office chair from the Aluminum Group Collection was manufact...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs ...
MaterialsAluminum, Steel
- Original Dark Gray Leather Office Chair by Eames for Herman MillerBy Charles Eames, Charles and Ray Eames, Herman MillerLocated in Detroit, MIThis authentic Eames for Herman Miller Soft Pad Management Height dark gray leather office chair from the Aluminum Group Collection was manuf...Category
Early 2000s American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
MaterialsAluminum, Steel
$2,300 Sale Price20% Off - Mid Century Black Leather Office Chairs by Eames for Herman Miller 8 AvailableBy Charles and Ray Eames, Herman MillerLocated in Detroit, MIThese Aluminum Group Management height office chairs designed by Charles & Ray Eames for Herman Miller are from the Eames Aluminum Group Collection. These distinctive chairs resulted...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs ...
MaterialsAluminum, Steel
$1,720 Sale Price / item20% Off - Mid Century Black Leather Office Chairs by Eames for Herman Miller, 2001By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Detroit, MIThese authentic Eames for Herman Miller Soft Pad Management Height black leather office chairs from the Aluminum Group Collection were manufactured in the 2001. This classic mid cent...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs ...
MaterialsAluminum, Steel
$13,800 Sale Price / set20% Off
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
The 21 Most Popular Mid-Century Modern Chairs
You know the designs, now get the stories about how they came to be.
A Guide to Herman Miller’s Most Iconic Furniture
The prolific manufacturer has partnered with many of the world’s top designers since opening its doors in 1923. Here are some of the company’s greatest hits, which helped transform the American home and office.