” Instead of an umbrella effect, he has sort an umbrella form-that is, an assembly of components that have to be forged and linked in his own shop.” -Connections: The Work of Charles and Ray Eames, 1977
I’ve always associated Charles and Ray Eames with a rigid and clean sense of design, as is found in their famous Eames House and Chair. Imagine my surprise when I stumbled upon a little-known booklet called Connections: The Work of Charles and Ray Eames which details the design processes, philosophies and lives behind the husband and wife team much beyond the stereotypes I’ve attached them to.
“The connections, the connections, the connections. It will in the end be these details that give the product its life.” -Charles Eames
The booklet reveals that their idea of connections and problem-solving became the binding thread of all the work that the duo did, and much they did! Residing in Los Angeles at that time, they had their hand in everything from architecture to furniture, to film-making, art, photography, even toys and product design.
What I am most impressed and inspired by, is the fact that they could find the connective tissue between all these seemingly disparate objects and turn them into tangible highly detailed products. They were truly original, in the sense that they were masters of visionary conceptualizing, the meticulous design process that followed as well as the highly-refined and almost scientific shop work that shaped their end products.
These are a few of my favorite pages, hopefully they will open your eyes to the rest of their fascinating body of work as it did me.
Eames Office Photographic Notes
Before there was Flickr-Charles Eames was a skilled and avid photographer, using it as a connective medium for all the different elements that presented itself at work. Look at all the wonderful colors and objects that was part of the daily photographic documentation at their studio!
Charles and Ray Eames
I love that there was always an element of playfulness even in their formal portraiture.
House of Cards
Whoever knew they designed toys?
The Desks
For all the limitations they placed on themselves and the painstaking engineering that is their architecture and furniture, it really is interesting to thumb through the pages of this booklet and find that much of their design and thought processes are fluid, playful and delightful with a strong sense of individuality.