EXHIBITION
OVERVIEW
Charles
and Ray Eames practiced design at its most virtuous and its
most expansive. From the 1940s to the 1970s, their furniture,
toys, buildings, films, exhibitions, and books aimed to improve
society--not only functionally, but culturally and intellectually
as well. The Eameses' wholehearted belief that design could
improve people's lives remains their greatest legacy. Even more
remarkable is how they achieved their seriousness of purpose
with elegance, wit, and beauty.
This exhibition brings together the sources of the Eameses'
inspiration, the personal documents of their lives, and the
finished products of their talent. In order to understand the
processes that led to the Eameses' achievements, this exhibition
is organized around challenges posed to them by clients or--as
with most creative geniuses--posed by themselves:
- how to produce affordable, yet high-quality furniture
- how to build economical, yet well-designed space for living
and working
- how to help people see beauty in the everyday
- how to help Americans and other cultures understand each
other
- how to make fundamental scientific principles accessible
to lay people.
The Eameses' vast body of work illustrates their solutions to
these challenges. They also demonstrate the ambition and scope
of the Eameses' agenda--from the utilitarian chair to complex
issues of human perception, understanding, and knowledge.
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DATES & VENUES
May 20 - September 4, 1999
Library of Congress
Washington, DC
October 12, 1999 - January 9, 2000
Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum
New York, New York
February 19 - May 14, 2000
Saint Louis Art Museum
Saint Louis, Missouri
June 25 - September 11, 2000
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Los Angeles, California
March
2 - May 19, 2001
Tel Aviv Museum of Art
Tel Aviv, Israel
June 26 - September 30, 2001
MAK (Museum of Applied Arts)
Vienna, Austria
June - September 2002
Vitra Design Museum
Berlin, Germany
All dates subject to change
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