Charles & Ray Eames, LCW chair

CHARLES EAMES (USA, 1907 - 1978) & RAY EAMES (USA, 1912 - 1988) for VITRA.
LCW" chair, design 1945.
Press-molded and strip-cut ash veneer.
Minimal signs of wear.
Produced by Vitra with label in 2018.
Measurements: 67 x 56 x 65 cm. Seat height 39 cm.

The LWC chair grew out of Charles and Ray Eames' experimentation with wood molding techniques. Their discoveries led them to be commissioned by the U.S. Navy to produce several heat and pressure molded pieces, which were successfully used in World War II. It is an ergonomic chair whose structure adapts perfectly to the human body. It was originally published and distributed by Herman Miller, but in 1957 Vitra signed a licensing agreement and began producing the LCW chair in Europe and the Middle East.

Charles and Ray Ames, married and artistic couple, worked in the fields of industrial and graphic design, fine art and film, and are responsible for numerous designs that have become classics of the 20th century. Charles Eames studied architecture for two years at the University of Washington, then began his career working in a studio on residential housing projects. In 1938 he moved to Cranbrook, Michigan, to continue studying architecture and design at the city's Academy of Art. He would eventually teach there, heading the industrial design department. Together with Eero Saarinen, the son of his teacher Eliel Saarinen, he designed the trophy for the Organic Design Award, given by the Museum of Modern Art in New York. In 1941, after divorcing his first wife, he married his colleague at Cranbrook, Ray Kaiser. Together they settled in Los Angeles, where they would remain for the rest of their lives. In the late 1940s, Ray and Charles designed their home together, known as the "Eames House," now considered a masterpiece of modern architecture. In the 1950s the couple continued to work in architecture and furniture design, pioneering the use of new techniques and materials such as fiberglass and plastic resin in the manufacture of chairs. They are currently represented in the Design Museum in London and the MoMA in New York, among many others.