Take a Seat

“What works good is better than what looks good, because what works good lasts,” once claimed Ray Eames, one-half of the American design team alongside her husband Charles Eames. The late husband-and-wife duo are among the most influential designers of the 20th century, and their modern and ergonomic practice spanned architecture, industrial design, and furniture including the Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman as well as the 1948 La Chaise. Pioneers in the use of novel materials such as molded plywood and fiberglass, the Eameses eventually acquired the attention and collaboration of furniture behemoths Vitra and Herman Miller. Once confined to the private spaces of a few lucky patrons, the highly coveted creations of Ray and Charles are now open for public viewing for the first time in their newly refurbished Bay Area headquarters.

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Approximately an hour northeast of San Francisco in the town of Richmond, the Eames Institute of Infinite Curiosity celebrates the vastness of the couple’s creative accomplishments. Its rooms hold more than 40,000 artifacts including products, prototypes, and personal items treasured by Ray and Charles. The opening marks the institute’s first in-person showcase since it was founded in 2022, following the successful launch of nine online exhibitions on the duo’s acclaimed work. The Eames Archives offers ticketed tours of the space personally guided by Llisa Demetrios, the institute’s chief curator and granddaughter of the late Eameses.

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Notable pieces featured in the Eames Archives include the Airplane Stabilizer, 1943, a prototype of airplane parts constructed out of molded and laminated plywood and developed for the US Navy; the Plywood Sculpture, 1943, a large-scale molded plywood sculpture; the Molded Plywood Seat, 1942, an early handmade version of the Kazam! machine, which allowed them to mass-produce molded plywood furniture with complex curves; and the Steinberg Diploma for Charles Eames, 1950, a fake, illegible diploma created by the American artist Saul Steinberg for the visionary designer.

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“It’s such a pleasure to expand the reach of the Eames Institute and further share the Collection with even more people,” said Demetrios in a statement. Along with the guided 90-minute tours, visitors will be able to purchase a selection of books, vintage items, and design objects inspired by the objects showcased in the inaugural space. “The Eames Archives is so special to me because it holds the things my grandparents loved and cherished,” Demetrios added. “[I]t’s an absolute joy to finally be able to share these pieces in this way.”

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The Eames Archives is now open at the Eames Institute of Infinite Curiosity’s headquarters at 1330 South 51st Street, Richmond, CA.