Collection Story
Origin
The Eames relationship with Herman Miller began with molded plywood. Early in the 1940s Charles and Ray Eames were commissioned by the US Navy to develop lightweight molded plywood leg splints. In 1946 Herman Miller introduced the Eames Molded Plywood Chair, Molded Plywood Lounge Chair, Folding Screen and Coffee Table, the same year New York's Museum of Modern Art staged "New Furniture Designed by Charles Eames"; in 1947 Herman Miller gained exclusive market and distribution rights to the molded plywood products.
Design Language
Lean and modern, playful and functional – Herman Miller calls it the "Eames look". Each project began with the same questions: does it intrigue us, can we make it better, will it be "serious fun"? One material led to the next: molded plywood led to molded fiberglass seating (1950), and later to cast aluminium and leather. "The details are not details," Charles said. "They make the product."
Key Pieces
- Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman (introduced 1956)
- Eames Molded Plywood Lounge Chair LCW and Dining Chair DCW (1946)
- Eames Molded Plastic / Fiberglass chairs, Eames Storage Units and Wire Base Low Table (1950)
- Eames Sofa Compact (1954), Eames Executive Chairs (1960) and Eames Chaise (1968)
- Eames Task Chairs (shell chair on a five-star base), Eames Coffee Table (1949, in production from 2017), Eames Molded Plywood Coffee Table (1946) and Eames Tables (1957-1964)
- Eames Hang-It-All (1953), Eames Aluminum Group, Eames Turned Stools, Eames Soft Pad Group
Pieces in this collection
Eames Molded Plastic Chair
Eames shell-chair family from 1950, now in recycled plastic; the wire-base side chair is measured.
Eames Sofa Compact
The Eames Sofa Compact, a six-foot, three-seat sofa in production since 1954.
Eames Executive Chairs
The 1960 Eames Executive Chair for the Time & Life Building, in leather on an aluminum base.
Eames Molded Wood Chairs
Three-dimensional veneer completes the Eameses' one-piece molded wood shell.
Eames Chaise
The 1968 Eames Chaise, an 18-inch-wide leather chaise on a die-cast aluminum frame.
Eames Coffee Table
Charles and Ray Eames's 1949 coffee table, reissued with a dowel base and wire struts.
Eames Molded Fiberglass Chairs
The 1950 Eames fiberglass shell chair, reintroduced in 2014 in a reformulated fiberglass.
Eames Soft Pad Chairs
The 1969 Eames Soft Pad Group: Aluminum Group chairs with plush individually upholstered cushions.
Eames Aluminum Group Chairs
The Eames suspension chair family in production since 1958, from side chair to executive chair.
Eames Molded Plastic Dining Chair
The EC-127 dining form returns in 2025 using post-industrial recycled plastic.
Eames Molded Plywood Lounge Chair LCW
The 1946 Eames lounge chair on molded plywood legs, with rubber shock mounts and a low seat.
Eames Shell Task Chairs
Charles and Ray Eames's molded shell chair on a five-star swivel base, as a side chair or armchair.
Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman (Herman Miller)
The 1956 Eames club-chair reinterpretation with 7-ply veneer shells and replaceable cushions.
Eames Shell Chairs
The Eames single-shell chair family, from the 1950 fiberglass chair to recycled-plastic shells.
Eames Molded Plywood Coffee Table
Charles and Ray Eames's 1946 round coffee table of molded plywood, on a wood or metal base.
Eames Sofa
The last piece of furniture produced by the Eames Office, in production since 1984.
Eames Tables
The Eames system of table bases and tops, from occasional to conference and standing height.
Eames Wire Chairs
The Eames welded-wire shell chair, produced from 1951 to 1967 and reintroduced in 2001.