One size fits all with the Eames chair
“What works is better than what looks good,” said Charles Eames. “The looks good can change, but what works works.” If that sounds a little utilitarian then it doesn’t tell nearly the whole story of husband-and-wife team Charles and Ray Eames, who over five decades designed everything from moulded plywood splints and stretchers for the US Navy to ground-breaking modern furniture.
The common denominator was a combination of simple good looks and high performance at an affordable price. And that’s the perfect description of their classic 1948 plastic armchair. The bright moulded seat fits the contours of the curviest rear end, and has the strength and flexibility of fibre-glass-reinforced plastic. The stand is a sturdy web of chrome struts. As one 1959 US catalogue put it, the Eames armchairs “can take the rugged playfulness of children and are elegant enough to be used when dining informally.” In 1950s America, praise didn’t come any higher.
These days, you can pick up this design classic in any number of colours and with a wide choice of stands, even a rocking-chair version expertly tailored to the slacker lurking deep within. The Eames chair looked devastatingly modern back in the Forties. It looks cool enough today to be a perfect candidate for the Timeless 50.
Tags: classic design, eames chair, timeless 50, volkswagen polo
[...] loved the Eames chair because of its functional chic. Or as designer Charles Eames put it: “What works is better than what looks [...]