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image credit: Đ
This classic table's top and legs are shaped by molding thin wood
veneers under heat and pressure--the same breakthrough process Charles
and Ray Eames used to create their molded plywood chairs.
The coffee table first came to Herman Miller's attention when George
Nelson, design director, saw it and other Eames molded plywood products
at a showing in the Barclay Hotel in New York City in the mid-1940s.
Nelson contacted the Eameses and soon afterward, they were designing
for Herman Miller. These imaginative tables are an enduring landmark of
modern, functional design.
Using the same technology that led to the invention of their iconic
molded plywood lounge chairs, the Eameses designed their Plywood Coffee
Table (1946) to have a lean, shaped form that was durable yet
lightweight. Its "saucer"-like top and curved legs first caught the eye
of Herman Miller; design director George Nelson during a one-man
furniture exhibition at the MoMA in 1946. Herman Miller has been
faithfully manufacturing the table for over 50 years. Compact and
lightly scaled, it is a versatile coffee table for both traditional and
modern spaces. Able to single-handedly convey the spirit of Eames
design with its warm, molded plywood and personable shape, it is
further complemented by the Eames; Molded Plywood Lounge Chairs. Made
in U.S.A. Simple assembly is required.
Dimensions:
H 15.5" Diameter 34"
Materials:
Natural ash veneer; maple inner ply; 8-ply base; 5-ply tabletop.
Characteristically, the Eames; Wire-Base Table is remarkable for the
elegance achieved using simple, practical materials. Its scaled-down
profile shows the influence of Japanese forms and households based on
an aesthetic ideal of simplicity, serenity and restraint. In fact, the
Eameses used these wire-base tables in their home during a tea ceremony
that included Isamu Noguchi and Charlie Chaplin. Just 10" high, the
table provides a handy surface for a stack of books or a place to rest
a drink.
In the late 1940s, Charles Eames noted all the "fantastic things being
made of wire." That fascination led Charles and Ray Eames to develop a
mass-production technique for simultaneously welding wire rods. One
result was the wire-base table introduced in 1950. Their work yielded
many other breakthrough products--including wire chairs, storage units,
and elliptical tables.
The wire-base tabletop cosists of seven layers of Baltic birch plywood,
beveled at 20 degrees and sandwiched between ash veneer or
high-pressure laminate in black or white. The base is available in a
powder-coat white, black or zinc.
n the late 1940s, Charles Eames noted all the "fantastic things being
made of wire." That fascination led Charles and Ray Eames to develop a
mass-production technique for simultaneously welding wire rods. One
result was the wire-base table introduced in 1950. Practical in so many
milieus, the tables gave the Eameses the perfect place to serve
chanoyu, the traditional Japanese tea ceremony, to special guests, such
as sculptor Isamu Noguchi and film star Charlie Chaplin. Today these
lightweight, diminutive tables stand on their own, next to beds and
chairs as an accompanying surface, or on top of each other in a
convenient stack.
Dimensions:
H 10" W 15.5" D 13.25"
Materials:
Laminate top; seven-ply Baltic birch core; wire base.
Charles and Ray Eames spent many years experimenting with wire rods,
work that yielded a number of breakthrough products in the 1950s. They
considered many shapes for this large table introduced in 1951, but
their final choice was elliptical. It reminds some of a surfboard.
That's fitting, given that the Eameses enjoyed commanding views of the
Pacific Ocean from their California home and studio.
Nicknamed the "surfboard table", this elongated Elliptical Table (1951)
exemplifies the delightful playfulness that enlivened the work of
Charles and Ray Eames. It also reveals the couple's practical side;
their desire to create furniture that would become a part of a life
lived with simplicity and beauty. Thus, the seven and half foot table
sets the stage for a bowl of fresh flowers, a special work of art or a
big picture book. Representing a whole new design language when it
appeared in 1951, the table was re-issued by Herman Miller; in 1994.
Its light wire base and long lean silhouette look just as refreshingly
modern today as then.
Charles and Ray Eames considered many shapes for this large table
introduced in 1951, but their final choice was elliptical. It reminds
some of a surfboard. That's fitting, given that the Eameses enjoyed
commanding views of the Pacific Ocean from their California home and
studio.
Charles and Ray Eames spent many years experimenting with wire rods,
work that yielded a number of breakthrough products in the
1950s--including the wire-rod base for this table, Eames wire-base
tables, Eames wire chairs, and other products.
Dimensions:
H 10" L 89" D 29.5"
Materials:
7-ply Baltic birch core; high-pressure laminate top and backer; zinc plated base.
image credit: Herman Miller
Wide selection. Inch-thick Eames table tops come in 36 sizes and four shapes: oval, rectangular, square, and round.
Modular bases. The Eames segmented-base table is an assembly of modular
elements that can be configured to support table top sizes from 30
inches to 22 feet long.
In 1964, the office of Charles and Ray Eames designed a table with a
single segmented base, constructed of modular units, that could support
tops of different lengths and widths. The strength and versatility of
the lean and simple base design makes it possible to produce tables in
a wide range of sizes.
Like all fine works of art, Eames tables endure through the decades.
Like all Herman Miller products, Eames tables purchased today have the
strength and durability to provide reliable performance for decades to
come.
Genuine innovation is rare. And perhaps no one has achieved it as often
as Charles and Ray Eames. Their inventive design for this dining table
makes functionality beautiful with an uncluttered profile well suited
to both traditional and contemporary interiors. To give the table
maximum strength and stability, Charles and Ray created a design that
securely affixes the base to the 1-inch-thick tabletop; adjustable
glides keep things on a even keel.
image credit: Herman Miller
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