Initially designed for the 1948 International Low Cost Furniture Design Competition arranged by the Museum of Modern Art, the Eames side chair was the first industrially-manufactured plastic chair. Motivated by the desire to create a mass amount of furniture to furnish the homes and offices of post-World War II America, Ray and Charles Eames set out to envision a piece which was highly adaptable, long-lasting and modern, and with the Side Chair they certainly achieved this, with the resulting piece being one which we continue to see some 70 years later.
This configuration features a recycled polypropylene chair and a simple metal base with four legs, with the wider Eames collection of shell chairs featuring all manner of alternative seats and bases.
American husband and wife design duo Charles and Ray Eames have had a profound influence on the visual character of American life, producing original work within the fields of architecture, furniture design, industrial design, manufacturing and the photographic arts.
The Eames’ first partnered with Vitra in 1957 to produce some of the most iconic pieces of furniture in the history of interior design. Today Vitra continues to reflect their philosophy on design and functionality, best understood through Charles’ own words: “Recognising the need is the primary condition for the design”.
