Herman Miller is adding a stylish splash of many colors to the Eames molded plywood lounge chair at NeoCon 2007, a dramatic update for a enduringly popular chair first produced in 1945 and named by Time magazine in 1999 as the Design of the Century. Herman Miller is reintroducing aniline stain in a series of fresh color choices on the richly grained birch veneer.
The colorful palette for the lounge chair with wooden legs (LCW) will initially include yellow, light blue, and white, with green, orange, purple, black, and red aniline stains added later this summer. The new colors also will be available later this summer on the Eames molded plywood lounge chair with metal legs (LCM), the dining chair with wooden legs (DCW) and the dining chair with metal legs (DCM).
The introduction of the new colors coincides with Herman Miller's celebration of the centennial of the birth of Charles Eames, who with his wife, Ray, produced modern classic designs for the company from the 1940s to the 1970s. Eames was born on June 17, 1907, in St. Louis.
"It's a festive way to observe the 100th anniversary of Charles Eames' birth--and the legacy of his incredible talent," said Marg Mojzak, Director of Herman Miller for the Home. "The Eameses were both serious and playful in their approach to design and life, and bringing these new colors to market on the LCW makes a great product even more appealing and fun."
Herman Miller collaborated with the Eames Office to select appropriate colors to apply to the design. Gregg VanderKooi, Product Manager - Classics for Herman Miller, said the LCW will continue to be produced in ash, walnut, and cherry veneers, noting that still more colors could be added in the coming years.
The Eames LCW will be shown at NeoCon in yellow, light blue and white aniline stains on birch veneer, which represents a return to the appearance and wood species used when the chair was first introduced.
"We know that the Eameses, were they alive today, would continue experimenting with materials and colors and finishes," said VanderKooi. "This is a way to honor their memory and refresh the classics.
"We were looking for a set of colors authentic to the period during which the LCW was designed," VanderKooi added. "We looked to the colors Eames used for the Eames Storage Unit and the Eames Hang-It-All. And we also found inspiration in textiles designed for Herman Miller by Eames' contemporary and friend, Alexander Girard."
VanderKooi noted that the chair is highly favored by the architecture and design community for its simple sculptural form, and that the new colors for the LCW are stirring intense appeal.
"The architecture and design community is really enthusiastic about these new color options," he said. "We've been looking for ways to make sure that the classics remain contemporary, and this is the first significant step in what will be an ongoing journey to update and refresh the collection of classics at Herman Miller."
The aniline stain version of the LCW will be available for order entry in June at a slight upcharge, VanderKooi said.
"The LCW is the first chair where it finally all came together for Charles and Ray--process, technology, mass-production, and unapologetic beauty all informing one clean, classic design," said Eames Demetrios, grandson of the designers and the head of the Eames Office in Southern California. "And it was only the beginning of an amazing run of equally timeless and still contemporary furniture.
"That's why if there's only one chair to invite to the party, the LCW has a pretty good case," he added, "and it's also probably why TIME called it the Design of the Century."
The designs and services of Herman Miller enhance the performance of human habitats worldwide, making our customers' lives more productive, rewarding, delightful, and meaningful. The company's award-winning products and services generated over $1.7 billion in revenue during fiscal 2006. Recognized for both its innovative designs and business practices, Herman Miller is a recipient of the prestigious National Design Award for product design from the Smithsonian Institution's Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum. In 2007, the company was again cited by Fortune magazine as the "Most Admired" company in its industry and was included among CRO magazine's "100 Best Corporate Citizens." The company trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol MLHR.
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