Ray Eames
Ray Kaiser Eames Berenice (* December 15, 1912 in Sacramento, California, † 21 August 1988) was an American artist and designer. Together with her husband Charles Eames (1907-1978) has it affected the lifestyle of the post-war America and europe - critical. Among her best known designs include the Lounge Chair La Chaise and.
Life, education
In 1931 Ray Kaiser their birthplace Sacramento to attend the May Friend Bennet School in Millbrook, New York. After your graduation she moved to Manhattan in 1933. Her art teacher at the Bennet School, Lucinda Duble studied in the 1920s in Munich with Hans Hofmann and Ray opened the way to Hofmann's class in New York. She studied painting with him until 1939, taking part in the intense blooming cultural life of New York and uses these years of study, especially to display their talent to compose expand. Hofmann promoted the plasticity of painting. Ray is referred to by Ben Baldwin as " Hofmann particularly liked " student. Soon they developed their own, not quite abstract and yet Hofmann specifications following style.
From 1949 until her death lived and worked in the Eames House in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles.
Work
In 1937, Ray as a member of the American Abstract Artists Association in the first exhibition in the Squibb Galleries, New York part (annually until 1940). In 1940, Ray moved to California " to build a house ." During a stopover at the Cranbrook Academy of Art (4 months studying design ) she has worked with Don Albinson and Harry Bertoia for Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen at the graphs for the display boards of the "Organic Design in Home Furnishings" competition held by the Museum of Modern Art in New York. They met Charles Eames know probably closer and the two married in 1941. During this partnership, Ray brought a as a creative part, but was not perceived by the public hardly up. However, there are some statements from employees and witnesses, assign the Charles the technical part of the work and the aesthetic Ray.
Is definitely associated with it, the draft " La Chaise" (1948 ) Liege. The design of this table ( chaise ) is one designed by Gaston Lachaise sculpture " Floating Figure " the leans back in a cloud-shaped seat shell based. For the " Organic Design in Home Furnishings" competition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York only a prototype was built only in the 1980s, the mass production of vitra was taken. There was a long time little sources and documents on the contribution of Ray Eames on the success of the Eames Office - her husband too was in the interest of the media.
At a ceremony held by the Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein to her 100th birthday in December 2012 it was stated that the role of Ray Eames in the work of the duo Charles and Ray Eames had to be re-evaluated, "Ray knew what was art. And Charles knew that she knew it. " On this occasion, a road on the grounds of the Vitra Campus architecture park Vitra AG in Weil am Rhein to Ray Eames Street was renamed.