The Eames House During and after World War II, Arts & Architecture magazine ran a program

that sought to create model houses for GIs returning home. The magazine commissioned leading architects of the time to create residences that were not only inexpensive, but functional as well. One of the more successful Case Study Houses was the 8th one designed, also known as the Eames House. It was completed in 1949 by the husband and wife duo, Charles and Ray Eames. Built overlooking the ocean in the city of Pacific Palisades, amazingly the house only used parts that could be found in a steel fabricators catalogue. This blend of form and functionality makes the Eames House a timeless work of art. Charles Eames career in architecture can be traced back to Washington University of St. Louis where he was given a scholarship and subsequently dismissed due to a falling out with his professors. Nonetheless, the talented young architect was offered a job at The Cranbrook Academy of Art where he taught and would meet his future wife, Ray Kaiser. The two of them would work on a few more building projects (one of their last was the Eames House) before they focused more on furniture design and film. One of Charles other notable works was the Entenza House built next door to his own for the editor of Arts & Architecture. The Eames furniture was scattered throughout the house making the project very original. Since the client for the house was themselves, the Eames needed something that would satisfy a busy couple in the design field. It needed to be able to give a lot to its tenants but not require too much maintenance. Back when he was first commissioned, Charles teamed up with his partner Eero Saarinen to design a house that fit these

restrictions. What they came up with was The Bridge House which was slated to be built once the war was over and supplies like steel were readily available. This changed, however, when Charles and Ray realized they wanted to keep the sites natural beauty as intact as possible. Their revisions became the Eames House which used the exact same supplies but with one extra support beam. This steel, concrete and glass home contains two giant boxes that empty out into a small courtyard in the center. In the end, the house served its purpose as both Charles and Ray lived there for the remainder of their lives. What made the house so amazing is that it utilized left over industrial supplies, and at the same time, fulfilled its purpose. It was cheap, easy to make (It took 3 days from start to finish) and was visually appealing as well. To this day, it is generally considered to be the most successful Case Study House built. Unfortunately, the idea that there would be a lot of industrial supplies left over after the war never materialized. Industrialization continued, and the houses design was left with little reason to be duplicated. Despite all this, the Eames continued to use the house day in and day out for their endless projects and designs. Even though it was never put into production, the Eames House along with the rest of the Case Study Houses was symbols of American ingenuity during the post-WWII era. The program put the spotlight on many architects on the west coast, and none shone as brightly as Charles and Ray Eames. To this day, their work is revered by many as timeless and in 2006 the house was even named a National Historic Landmark. It is no wonder that the Eames went on to design some of the most innovative and artistic furniture when they designed it in a house like this.

Bibliographic Sources "Eames House. Wikipedia. 29 Aug. 2007 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eames_House>. Eames House Digital 3D Models. Great Buildings Online. 29 Aug. 2007 <http://www.greatbuildings.com/models/Eames_House_mod.html>. Rubino, Luciano. Ray & Charles Eames. Roma: Kappa, 1981. Eames, Charles. Connections: The Work of Charles and Ray Eames. Los Angeles: UCLA Art Council, 1976.