Eames
Molded Wood
Side Chair
On the first anniversary of the launch of the Herman Miller
Collection the company returns to New York Design Week
to present some of their latest designs including the Eames
Molded Wood Side chair.
For the first time this iconic form will be produced in molded
wood in a range of veneer and base options, and will be
called the Eames Molded Wood Side Chair.
Designed by Charles and Ray Eames and introduced by
Herman Miller in 1950, the original plastic chair line was first
explored as shells stamped in steel, before successfully mass
producing the designs in molded plastic.
Later the side chair was revisited in wire. Throughout their
careers, the Eames were keenly interested in exploring new
technologies and materials, including their earlier pioneering
work in molded plywood, and used that material in several of
their best known designs.
But the technology limitations of their day prevented the
designers from producing the plastic side chair form in
molded wood; the curves were simply too dramatic and
complex.
Now, the latest advances in 3-D veneer technology give the
wood veneer the extra flexibility it needs to be molded into
the complex curves of a single shell. Honoring the same
organic shapes and sleek lines of the Eames classic work, it
celebrates the designers’ appreciation of honest materials.
In reviewing the prototypes for this new