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. The Eameses were lovers of folk craft who had a genius for making highly original chairs, tables, case pieces and other furniture using traditional materials and forms.
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 Eames (1907–78) studied architecture and industrial design. Ray Eames (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 — vintage Eames splints 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 Eames chair, 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 original Eames furniture for sale on 1stDibs includes chairs, tables, case pieces and other items.
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.
Charles and Ray Eames DKR-2 Wire Chair for Herman Miller
By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Los Angeles, CA
DKR-2 chair by Charles and Ray Eames for Herman Miller, also referred to as the bikini chair features a white Naugahyde seat cushion and seat back resembling a bikini. The chair has ...
Metal
$1,400
H 27.5 in W 19 in D 22.5 in
C. 1954 Herman Miller Eames Wire LKX-2 Side / Lounge Chair with OG Bikini Pad
By Charles and Ray Eames, Herman Miller
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is a LKX-2 side chair, originally designed by Ray and Charles Eames in 1951. This particular example was produced by Herman Miller in the USA C. 1954. The chair is comprised of ...
Steel
C. 1957 Herman Miller Eames Wire DKX-1 in Black Steel with Bikini Pad
By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is a DKX-1 Wire Chair, originally designed by Charles and Ray Eames in 1951. This example was produced by Herman Miller circa 1957. The chair features a sculptural black steel w...
Steel
$1,200
H 32 in W 19 in D 21 in
C. 1954 Herman Miller Eames DKR-1 Wire Dining Side Chair with Black Naugahyde
By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is an Eames DKR-1 Side Chair, originally designed by Ray and Charles Eames for Herman Miller in 1951. This particular example was produced circa 1954. The design features an Eif...
Steel
Early Eames Swiveling Dowel Legged Wire Chair, DKW-1
By Charles and Ray Eames, Herman Miller
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Rare early swiveling dowel leg chair with walnut legs, designed by Charles & Ray Eames for Herman Miller, model DKW-1, 1951/1952. Wire top and timeworn weaved fabric seat. Original t...
Wire
$12,377 / set
H 31.89 in W 18.9 in D 19.3 in
Pkw-2 Pivoting K-Wire Wood Base Side Chair, Eames Herman Miller, Bikini, Seng
By Charles and Ray Eames, Herman Miller
Located in Frankfurt am Main, DE
eames‘ chairs are so common and widespread today that you’ve actually seen them far too often. but there are some versions that are a bit more special – making them collector’s items. for example, these ray & charles eames side chairs ‚pkw-2‘, meaning a pivoting, k-wire chair on a wooden base. version 1 would be a fully covered seat, version 2 is the cut-out „bikini“ cover, where you can see the wire mesh construction. this is also known as a ‚bikini swivel wire chair‘. here we have a black and a white one. we understood they were imported from the united states as a pair to Europe – but then sold on to different customers. years ago we bought the white one as the first piece in our eames-1st-generations-collection. by chance or serendipity, we were now able to find and buy the black one also and thus reunite the pair. together they make impressive and scarce art objects to grace any collection of early midcentury design. interestingly the dowel-leg-version was discontinued after 1954: the open ball-bearing connection and the elegant thin wooden legs weren’t very practical. weight and power, when swivelling, sometimes resulted in cracks or breakage. (that’s why we wouldn’t recommend them to use as a kitchen chair, maybe.) they are functional, showing a wonderful patina and are great pieces to admire and to understand the thinking behind the design. set of 2 side chair, model pkw-2, swivel dowel-base 1 white powder coated wire-shell, cognac-coloured leather bikini...
Metal
$8,240Sale Price|20% Off
H 32 in W 25 in D 24 in
Charles & Ray Eames DAR Eiffel Rope Edge Chair, 1st Generation, 1950
By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames, Zenith
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Charles Eames (1907-1978) & Ray Eames (1912-1988) for Zenith Plastics / HermanMiller DAR Eiffel rope-edge chair Venice, California / Zeeland, Michigan, 1950 fiberglass, enameled steel early sticker label Measures: 24 7/8" W x 23 5/8" D x 31 3/8" H All original parts, including rare first gen. feet, which date the piece to the first batch of production (1950). Labelled. Gorgeous museum worthy piece. Quite possibly one of the most famous and iconic chairs ever, the Eames DAR would most commonly become known as the ‘eiffel chair’ due to its sculptured wire base resembling that of Europe’s most notorious landmark. The very first generation of the Eames DAR Eiffel Chair was recognizable not only for the ‘rope edge’ shell but also due to the protruding ‘1st gen’ feet as opposed to boot glides or later plastic feet. The abbreviated Eames DAR Chair stands for the Eames Dining (D) height, Arm (A) Chair, on Rod (R) Base released in the first year of arm chair production of the fiberglass series developed to the marketplace in 1950. The early success of the Eames arm chairs, released in 1950, was a co-ordinated effort between the Eames . Office (Designers), Zenith Plastics (Manufacturers) and Herman Miller (Distributors). The chair series was always designed to have interchangeable bases and the DAR was one of the ‘original 5’ alongside the DAX X-base, LAR cats cradle...
Stainless Steel
1st Generation Eames LKX Lounge Wire Mesh Side Chair 1951
By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Detroit, MI
Hard-to-find First Generation Eames LKX (Low/Wire/X-base) lounge chairs, only made one year with this configuration; 1951. Made by Charles & Ray Eames for He...
Steel, Wire
$1,500
H 26.5 in W 18.5 in D 19 in
Early and first generation Eames Herman Miller LSX wire lounge chair on X base
By Charles and Ray Eames, Ray Eames, Charles Eames, Herman Miller
Located in Ferndale, MI
This is an early Eames Herman Miller LSX chair . That is Lounge Side chair on X base . First generation (1950) with screw in domes of silence foot glides . The brace or frame...
Steel, Wire
Eames Dowel Leg Wire Chair for Herman Miller, 1950s
By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Oklahoma City, OK
Iconic Eames wire side chair with dowel leg base, designed by Charles and Ray Eames for Herman Miller. This example features a black enameled steel wire seat and back, mounted on th...
Metal
Eames DCM Dining Chair by Herman Miller
By Charles and Ray Eames, Herman Miller
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Classic Eames DCM dining chair in black. Colored ash seat and back along with chrome frame. Self leveling nylon glides intact, allowing for use on mul...
Wood
Herman Miller Eames DAX Fiberglass Chair
By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Gorgeous and rare hue of red orange on this vintage fiberglass Herman Miller Eames armchair. Model DAX with H base. All shock mounts intact. Stamped Herman Miller under chair and gua...
Fiberglass
Herman Miller Eames DCM Dining Chair
By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Classic Herman Miller Eames DCM dining chair. Ebonized molded wood seat and back, supported by chrome steel rod frame. All screws and self leve...
Steel, Chrome
Early Eames DCM Dining Chair by Herman Miller, 1950s Edition
By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Gorgeous early Herman Miller edition Eames DCM chair. Molded seat and back with walnut finishes. Dates to the 1950s, with solid steel rod frame, with original plating. Metal in good ...
Walnut
Authentic RAR Rocking Chair by Charles & Ray Eames for Herman Miller, 1960s
By Charles and Ray Eames, Herman Miller
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Authentic and rare RAR Rocking chair designed by Ray & Charles Eames for Herman Miller. This rocking chair was manufactured in the 1960s. The rocking chair is in original vintage con...
Metal
Early Herman Miller Eames DCM Dining Chair
By Charles and Ray Eames, Herman Miller
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Handsome example of the iconic Eames DCM. Herman Miller Eames edition, signed and guaranteed authentic. Circa late 1950s/early 1960s production. All screws and glides present. Beauti...
Metal
