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Essay: The influence of design

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  • Subject area(s): Photography and arts essays
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  • Published: 31 October 2015*
  • Last Modified: 11 September 2024
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  • Words: 1,532 (approx)
  • Number of pages: 7 (approx)

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As time passes, the influence of design is speeding up in human environment. Especially, product design is close to human’s life because of it’s characteristic. People could experience and use their product in every moment of there life. So, product designers still think about their identity to growth the value of human life. Therefore, the design for social good is the most important issue for recent various designs. For example, the person who insists that designers need to take their own social and moral responsible for their work is Victor Papanek. Because design has the most powerful effect on compose of the environment and the tools used by human. Furthermore, he argued that designers should considered about pragmatic one to improve human’s life and provide convenience instead of focus on only aesthetic feature. (Papanek, 1984) This essay will investigate about one product, which designed in 1950, and explain of that well designed product called Eames chair. Moreover, focus on Eames chair to explain the whole things about that in various ways such as shape and colour, materials, function, audience and recycling.

Before the very first step, the life of Charles and Ray Eames’ life has to known for understanding the lounge chair. Charles Eames (1907-1978) and his wife, Ray (1912-1988) designed some of the most important examples of 20th century furniture, but they also used their talents to invent ingenious children’s stuff such as toys, puzzles, films, and exhibitions. Charles and Ray Eames made prototype a mass-manufactured product in their spare room was to characterize their work over the next four decades. Although they invent their well-designed chair in the late 20th century, they still do something creative work through their films, teaching, writing. Through these behaviors, you could see they have their own responsibility for social acting. Sadly, that behavior was not helpful for society and environment. Both Charles and Ray were the two children in middle-class families and gifted students with a flair for art, even if their backgrounds were very different. Born in 1907, Charles Ormand Eames grew up in St Louis, Missouri. His father was a keen amateur photographer, worked in railway security. When Charles was eight, his father was wounded from a robbery and died four years later. Charles did a part-time job to support his family, but still superior at school. His class yearbook described him as “a man with ideals, courage to stand up for them and ability to live up to them.” After high school, he won an architecture scholarship to Washington University in St Louis. On the other hand, Bernice Alexandra Kaiser was born in California in 1912. Also, Ray came from a warm, nice and creative family. Her father was insurance salesman and both parents were support her to love art, dance and film. Her father is died in 1929. And after that, Ray and her mother moved to New York. That place is near to her brother, and at that time, he was doing army service at West Point. Ray entered at the Art Students League, and studied painting from Hans Hoffman. When her mother death in 1940, Ray moved to Cranbrook. And in Cranbrook, she met Charles, and fell in love with him. He divorced Catherine in 1941, and he married Ray in Chicago a month later. They planed for a long honeymoon drive to Los Angeles, which is their new house site. During the journey, they picked up tumbleweed from the road, which still hangs from the ceiling of the Eames House today. (Design Museum, Unknown)

Usually, with a great sense of experiment, Charles and Ray Eames enjoying to turn their curiosity and unlimited enthusiasm into creations that established them as a great teamwork of husband-and-wife design team. Their own harmony of energy led to a whole brand new look in furniture. It was totally lean, modern, playful and functional. That was called “Eames look”. // The lounge chair is one of the most typical designs by Charles and Ray Eames. It was created in 1956, and it is becoming a classic in the history of modern furniture Charles Eames’s try to make something that had the ‘warm, receptive look of a well-used first baseman’s mitt’, and the result was successful. Also, it is made with moulded plywood and leather. And recently, the permanent collection of Eames chair is moved to the Museum of Modern Art in New York. (Nylind, L, 2012) // Also, in 1940, Herman Miller started with moulded plywood chairs and Eames lounge chair because of Eames look and their teamwork. Charles and Ray Eames usually achieved their monumental success with giving some questions by themselves. They approach each project with same question such as: Does it interest and intrigue us? Can we make it better? Will we having fun during make it? They loved their work, which was a combination of style and function, art and science, process and product, design and architecture. (Hermanmiller, 2015)
Firstly, the new materials and techniques were used in chair’s construction, such as using laminated plywood made with layers of veneers, which was widely developed during the Second World War, and it was for military purposes. The metal supports and frames were manufactured from lightweight aluminium. Also, rubber spacers are used to compose the headrest part, which is between the laminated veneers and aluminium supports, and it could allow slight flexibility. They also could absorb the impact, especially when the people sit on the chair. Also the cushions, aluminium frames and veneer forms combine to form a linkage chair and a well-made creative design. And the nestled supple leather-covered cushions in molded-plywood, veneer-covered forms and connected them with die-cast aluminum back braces. The cushions were then set on bases painted black with bright polished aluminum trim and adjustable stainless steel glides. (Merrell, 2006) Moreover, Charles and Ray Eames are famous for using honest materials and exposed structure, but they also believed in great solutions to engineering problems is the way to hold things together. The solution they came up with was the rubber shock mount, which is basically a metal disc encased in rubber. The Eames lounge has 4 oval shock mounts, bounded to the inside of the wood shell at the upper tips of the bottom shell and the ‘ears’ of the middle shell. A black metal plate attaches to both shock mounts on each side, and then the upholstered armrest is fitted on top of the metal plate and secured from underneath. (V.Ryan, 2011)
Charles and Ray Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman

Fig 1. http://www.eamesoffice.com/the-work/670-lounge-chair671-ottoman/
However, the plywood shells is bent two-dimensionally for the shoulders, back, seat. And ottoman was made of veneered in the early version with rosewood and later with walnut or rosewood. Originally, the leather upholstery was filled with goose feathers. After that, they use soft foam to fill it, and it was completely removable. However, the connection of the seat to the back is a special feature of the construction. Back sections are held together with hard rubber discs and two cast aluminium supports. The armrests supply the one connection of the back with the shell and feature washers made of Neoprene. People could rotate the chair with star-base, but its individual components are flatly connected to each other. (Vitra Design Museum, Unknown)
Minutely, for the Seat and back, they use moulded plywood, different face veneers. Standard version in cherry, santos palisander or black pigment finished walnut. Also, they have two different version of colour. One is white version, which use walnut with a white pigment finish, and Black version with ash with a black lacquer finish. Moreover, for upholstery and cover, they choose removable cushions, covers in Premium or Grand leather, but black version only in Premium leather. This chair’s strong point such as comfortable padding, the liberal, well-shaped extent offer, and conjunction with the ottoman made nearly best sitting comfort. (Vitra, Unknown)
Dimensions of Eames chair (Lounge Chair classic dimensions / New dimensions / Ottoman)

Dimensions of Eames chair

Fig 2. http://www.vitra.com/en-gb/product/lounge-chair#t/tab-dimensions

On the other hand, those valuable products have the problem with various fake chairs. Although people want to buy that designed chair, the original Eames chair is expensive to buy it at ease.
From a common-sense standpoint, Charles Eames lounge chair and ottoman is beloved from many rich people, who has interest about well-designed product. Therefore, most of people who want to use this chair need same shaped cheaper chair. So, nowadays, people could get Eames’s style fake chair through internet web site which sell furniture with easily way. Sadly, the problem of that phenomenon is about design and completion of product. People could find the screw and fake leather seat with weird angle, which cause the backache for spine and neck because of the wrong angle. Because of the lame imitate, the fake chair could cause the problem of spine and neck, also, it is not comfortable as much as original chair naturally. People who make the fake chair are only care about the similar shape and form of that instead of follow chair’s real function and technique. But still, many people buy the imitation chair to experience the fair quality vicariously. (Kanter. D, 2015)

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