Eames Moulded Plywood Chair
Herman Miller Aesthetic integrity, enduring charm, inviting comfort. Charles + Ray Eames You can tell it’s Eames at a glance. Lounge chair, dining chair. Both with wood or chrome-plated steel legs. Moulding thin sheets of lightweight veneer into gently curved shapes gives the durable material a soft, inviting appearance. The chairs work just about anywhere, from homes and offices to schools and public areas.A foundation for modern furniture design
Designers Charles and Ray Eames established their long and legendary relationship with Herman Miller in 1946 with their boldly original moulded plywood chairs. The aesthetic integrity, enduring charm and comfort of the chairs earned them recognition from _Time_ magazine as The Best Design of the 20th Century. _Time_ called the design “something elegant, light and comfortable. Much copied but never bettered.” (A locomotive came in second.)
Finish choices
The chairs are offered with richly grained birch veneer in bright colours that recall the times when the chairs were introduced. The environmentally friendly aniline stains that we use allow the wood’s natural characteristics to shine through. The chairs are also available in natural cherry, walnut and light ash.
A shape that sits well
In their search for a better way, Charles and Ray Eames developed an innovative technique for moulding plywood. The process allowed them to bend wood in new directions and give hard materials a softer look. The moulding process creates contours in the plywood that fit the shape of the body. The plywood has five plies, with hardwood inner plies. Natural rubber shock mounts absorb movement.
Expansive options
The Eames Moulded Plywood Chair is available in a range of upholstered fabric options and two new base finish options – a sophisticated black matt and an environmentally friendlier trivalent chrome. These choices join a range of established options that together reflect the original character of this timeless classic.
Best design of the twentieth century
The story behind the Eames Moulded Plywood Chairs reveals how imagination and serendipity play a major role in design. In the early 1940s, when Charles Eames was working on MGM set designs, he and his wife Ray were experimenting with wood-moulding techniques that would have a profound effect on the world of design. Their discoveries led to a commission from the US Navy to develop plywood splints, stretchers and glider shells, moulded under heat and pressure, that were used successfully in World War II.
How far could wood be pushed?
When the war was over, Charles and Ray applied the technology they had created to make affordable, high-quality chairs that could be mass-produced using dimensionally shaped surfaces instead of cushioned upholstery. When they found that plywood did not withstand the stresses that occurred where the chair seat and back met, they abandoned their original single-shell idea in favour of a chair that had separate-moulded plywood panels for the back and seat.
Sculpted to the human body
The process eliminated the extraneous wood from the junction of the seat and back, which reduced the weight and visual profile of the chair and established a basis for modern furniture design. Sculpting a seat and back to fit the contours of the human body, they designed a truly comfortable chair that’s suitable for business and home environments.
You can tell it’s Eames at a glance. Lounge chair, dining chair. Both with wood or chrome-plated steel legs. Moulding thin sheets of lightweight veneer into gently curved shapes gives the durable material a soft, inviting appearance. The chairs work just about anywhere, from homes and offices to schools and public areas...
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Lead Time: 12+ Weeks
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