Lot Essay
The unusual dimensions of this chair, particularly the low seat height, the composition and thickness of the plywood elements, the deep contours of the moulded seat and the exceptionally rare duel circular shock mount assembly on the chair's back, all serve to date this example to early-mid 1946 - a time of intense activity in the development of the plywood chairs.
In late 1945, the Detroit-based Evans Products Company took the decision to begin marketing the Eames's designs. Manufacture of display models for showrooms began at Evans' Venice California subsidiary (Moulded Plywood Division) in early 1946 while production processes were still being refined. Fine-tuning the design of the chairs for mass-production proved difficult; from the outset, one of the greatest problems was perfecting the method by which the wooden chair backs were joined to the spine. Flexible rubber discs (shock mounts) were used to provide resiliency but attaching them to the wooden chair parts posed many technical problems. Different kinds of glues and other methods were tried and discarded, including electronic cycle-welding a lozenge shaped rubber shock mount to the wooden back and spine. The glued, duel disc and screw attachment assembly, as used on the present chair, was an early attempt at solving the connection problem but was abandoned prior to production most probably because of cost, lengthy production time and aesthetic concerns.
This rare example of the LCW was purchased by Arthur B. Gallion, Dean of the School of Architecture at the University of Southern California directly from Charles Eames prior to the chair's initial production in Venice.
See: Neuhart, pp. 53-75, discussion of the LCW's development.
In late 1945, the Detroit-based Evans Products Company took the decision to begin marketing the Eames's designs. Manufacture of display models for showrooms began at Evans' Venice California subsidiary (Moulded Plywood Division) in early 1946 while production processes were still being refined. Fine-tuning the design of the chairs for mass-production proved difficult; from the outset, one of the greatest problems was perfecting the method by which the wooden chair backs were joined to the spine. Flexible rubber discs (shock mounts) were used to provide resiliency but attaching them to the wooden chair parts posed many technical problems. Different kinds of glues and other methods were tried and discarded, including electronic cycle-welding a lozenge shaped rubber shock mount to the wooden back and spine. The glued, duel disc and screw attachment assembly, as used on the present chair, was an early attempt at solving the connection problem but was abandoned prior to production most probably because of cost, lengthy production time and aesthetic concerns.
This rare example of the LCW was purchased by Arthur B. Gallion, Dean of the School of Architecture at the University of Southern California directly from Charles Eames prior to the chair's initial production in Venice.
See: Neuhart, pp. 53-75, discussion of the LCW's development.