Whether you are an entry-level or a hardcore Eames fan, you will enjoy the new documentary film “Eames: The Architect and the Painter” by filmmakers Jason Cohn and Bill Jersey. This fascinating documentary covers the career of Charles and Ray Eames, including the insightful personal account behind the designs and the nature of the collaboration of two of  America’s most important designers (design pioneers). Narrated by James Franco, this is the first film dedicated to the couple since their deaths.

Eames: The Architect and the Painter

I sometimes find documentary films rather boring, but there is never a dull moment in this 84-minute film filled with a wide array of archival materials and interviews with individuals who had close proximity with Charles and Ray Eames. It is very well-crafted in presenting how the couple defined postwar modernist aesthetic through not only with their furniture designs but also with their other projects such as films and exhibitions.

In addition, the film reveals more intimate and emotional side of the couple’s lives which remained very private while they were alive. If you ask me about what I think of including Charles’s love affair in the film – I’d say “that’s a little TMI.” All these years, I sort of “romanticized” about the couple’s relationship – their partnership seemed so perfect in work and life. However, what I have learned about the couple in this film doesn’t change anything about how I admire them – actually I see them as more “real people” than just the “design legend.”

If you are fairly new to the world of Charles and Ray Eames, “Eames: The Architect and the Painter” will give you a wealth of information well beyond their furniture design. If you are a big Eames fan like me, this film will let you fall in love with the Eameses all over again for sure!

Now playing at selected theatres – find playdates here.

Filmmakers – Jason Cohn & Bill Jersey
Studio – First Run Features
Run Time – 84 minutes
Language – English
Format – Digital
Year – 2011
Genre – Documentary

Will be available on DVD on December 13th, 2011. Preorder available at First Run Features and many other retailers:

Philbrook Museum of Art will be hosting a special event featuring five Eames films including “Powers of Ten” and five speakers to discuss the impact of modern design in Tulsa. The event is co-presented by the Tulsa Foundation for Architecture and Modern Tulsa.

Powers of Ten Day

Event Summary
When: October 10, 2010 (Sunday), 2:00pm – 3:30pm
Where: Patti Johnson Wilson Hall, Philbrook Museum of Art
Cost: Free

Starting viewpoint

The film starts with an image of a couple having a picnic by the lakeside in Chicago. A scene is settled upon a man laying on a blanket one meter away, which is the starting viewpoint. This viewpoint slowly zooms out at a rate of one power of ten every ten seconds, taking the viewer on a journey into the edge of universe (100 millions light years out). Then the viewer is taking back to the picnic at the lakefront. The journey ends in a single proton of a carbon atom inside the man’s hand.

A single proton of a carbon atom

So what does “Powers of Ten” film teach us? At first, the film seems to be about math and science. The film has been shown to people in science classes, scientific museums, science related exhibits and events. To me, it’s a little more than that. It teaches me to expand my horizon and always view things from different scale and perspective, not just one or my own.

Powers of Ten

Powers of Ten Day (10/10/10) is approaching. The Eames Office celebrates Powers of Ten Day every October 10th. This year’s cerebration includes the online streaming of Powers of Ten. They also urge you to choose Powers of Ten related theme to celebrate and send pictures to them. Check out the Eames Office website and their Powers of Ten website for more information.

Limited Edition Eames Hang-It-All

Those who ever wanted the Hang-It-All in different color scheme, here is a good news. On August 15, 2010, Eames Hang-It-All is available with black welded-steel frame and solid walnut balls for $249. This edition of Hang-It-All is a part of “Herman Miller Select,” a once-a-year limited edition release. The Select Edition Walnut Hang-It-All will be available in limited quantities, until early 2011. So, grab it before it’s too late!

Multi-Colored Eames Hang-It-All

Hang-It-All (multi-color and/or limited) Available at:

Office Designs

Smart Furniture (Free Shipping on All Herman Miller Furniture)

Highbrow Furniture

Hive Modern

Design Within Reach

and many other online retailers!

Specs:

• 36, 1.75″ (4.5 cm) square Alphabet Blocks (20 for the house, 16 for the studio)
• House 8.75″ x 3.5″ x 3.5″ (22 cm x 8.9 cm x 8.9 cm)
• Studio 7″ x 3.5″ x 3.5″ (17.8 cm x 8.9 cm x 8.9 cm)
• Made in the USA with replenishable Michigan-grown, kiln-dried basswood
• Printed with non-toxic, lead-free, child-safe inks

Aqua Sky Armchair with Eiffel Legs

The Eames molded plastic chairs were first introduced in 1948. They were the first industrially mass produced one-piece plastic chairs. Originally, the shells were made with fiberglass-infused plastic. Today’s Eames molded plastic chairs are manufactured with more environmentally friendly materials, 100% recyclable polypropylene. The chairs are even more environmentally friendly now that they are made in the United States to reduce their manufacturing carbon footprint.

Java Shell Chair with Dowel Legs

Charles and Ray Eames’ clean, simple, and enduring design have been loved by many since they were first introduced more than 60 years ago. Good design is timeless – The Eames molded plastic chairs perfectly fit in the category.

Available at:

Elroy Artspace Gallery in Portland, Oregon is featuring mid century modern inspired art in “Dreams of Eames” group show on April 1st, 2010. The show is a tribute to the iconic mid century modern designer, Charles Eames. The art for this show is exemplifies the palette, technique or subject matter relating to the period, and to Eamesʼ own design tenets.

Dreams of Eames Group Show

Event Summary
What: “Dreams of Eames” Group Show
When: April 1, 2010 5pm-9pm
Where: Elroy Artspace Gallery, 1720 NW Lovejoy #103 (Pearl District), Portland, Oregon 97209
More Information: Call Elroy Art Agency at 503-609-0509

Participating Artists:
El Gato Gomez is the show-name of CZM, a Pittsburgh-based artist. Her work is a caricature of the modern design revolution, and from the premise of encouraging playfulness and wild creativity while maintaining the dignity of form and balance.

El Gato Gomez

Joel Pirela is a graphic and custom knife designer from Miami, FL, who translates mid century modern furniture, architecture and important figures of the 1950′s into basic graphic forms to communicate a message where the lines and colors speak loudly.

Joel Pirela

George Perrouʼs art is inspired by mid-century animation, and gives nods to Miro, Kandinsky and Calder. Perrou’s is a style all his own, painting colorful abstractions of reality onto the canvas using retro and modern colors in acrylic. George lives and paints in the creative epicenter of Portland, Oregon.

George Perrou

What: Win an Eames House Sunset Tour
Date: March 11, 2010
Time: 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
How To Enter: Type the words EAMES HOUSE into the COMMENTS box. The lucky three winners will be notified by February 23, 2010. Contest does not include travel costs to the Eames House in Pacific Palisades, California.

For more information, visit House Industries’ website.

An Eames Primer by Eames Demetrios

If you are in Tulsa, Oklahoma area, be sure to join the Philbrook Museum of Art’s “3rd Thursday” speaker series event on January 21, 2010. This series of 3rd Thursday will be joined by Eames Demetrios, a filmmaker, director of The Eames Office, author of An Eames Primerand a member of the Eames family. As most of you have already known, he is a grandson of iconic mid century modern designers, Charles and Ray Eames.

Demetrios dedicates his efforts in communicating, preserving, and extending the work of the Eameses. At this event, Eames Demetrios will provide a personal look at the designers, their process, philosophy and influence on the design world in a discussion on design vs. style. He will also be sharing a few treasures from the Eames family archive.

The event is presented in partnership with Art Directors Club of Tulsa and in conjunction with Modern Tulsa, an organization of the Tulsa Foundation for Architecture.

Event Schedule:

Date: January 21, 2010
Place: Philbrook Museum of Art (Tulsa, Oklahoma), Patti Johnson Wilson Hall
Times: 5:30 PM to 8:00 PM
5:30 pm: Tickets available from the Admission desk (no advance reservations)
5:30-6:30 pm: Cash bar available and photographer on site for your chance to be a part of the museum’s new ad campaign
6:30-7:30 pm: Lecture begins in Auditorium, Live simulcast near Restaurant
7:30-8 pm: Free posters designed by Eames Demetrios will be available for signing

My First Eames Fiberglass Chair

Now that I learned how to restore the Eames fiberglass shell chairs, I decided to tackle another project. I was going to restore one of the two orange arm shells I purchased online a few years ago. I have been using one with a rocker base and the other with an Eiffel base. After the purchase, I used a fiberglass cleaner designed for boats to clean and polish them. They were not as shiny as I wanted them to be, so I decided to try the restoration method I learned from a website called “chairfag.com” to restore the fiberglass back to its original luster. It’s a really good website that walks you through an arm shell shock mount removal and fiberglass restoration with a lot of pictures. If you are planning to restore your shell chair, you should definitely check it out.

Sanding the Chair

I set up a working area outside, since it requires a wet sanding. I pulled a garden hose and filled the bottom of my chair with water. Gearing up with a safety glasses, a mask and a pair of thick vinyl gloves, I started to sand the chair with a fine sanding block. With the garden hose, I wet the area as I sanded to prevent fiberglass dust from getting all over the place. There were some tiny paint spots on my chair I didn’t notice before. I got rid of them by sanding the chair as well.

Cleaning the Chair

Once I sanded the entire chair, I rinsed it with water and gave it a sponge bath with Oxyclean to remove the embedded dirt as much as possible. Then I let it air dry.

Applying Penetrol

The next step was to coat the chair with a product called “Penetrol” that I picked up at Home Depot. To do this, I moved the working area to my porch. The porch was a perfect spot as it was well ventilated and had a minimum effect from the wind and dust. Penetrol is an oil paint conditioner that is also used to restore fiberglass. I first applied the coat to the bottom of the chair and let it set for a few hours. I then attached the base, flipped the chair over and applied Penetrol to the rest of the chair.

Before

The chair is now shiny and looks much better than it was.

After

Disclaimer – this post is just to share my experience and not intended as a tutorial to restore your chair. If you are restoring your chair, I would recommend you research well before tackling your restoration project.