In partnership with Herman Miller and Vitra, the Eames Foundation today unveiled a limited run of the Eames LTR (Low Table Rod Base) with tops made of eucalyptus wood harvested from the Eames House property. The design was introduced by the Eames Foundation at the Eames House during a celebration of the home’s 70th anniversary.
For 70 years, the Eames House has rested in a meadow on the California Coast in the shade of more than 200 Eucalyptus trees. As part of the ongoing conservation management plan for the property, the Eames Foundation felled two of these eucalyptus trees in 2018. To extend the longevity of these beautiful trees, Herman Miller and Vitra—the only producers of original Eames furniture in the world—worked with the Eames Foundation to create solid tops for a limited run of Eucalyptus LTR Tables.
Eames Eucalyptus LTR
Charles and Ray would have appreciated this inventive use of the trees that surrounded their home. They valued them so much that they designed the site of the Eames House with the trees’ protection in mind, and even finished their living room wall in eucalyptus wood. How fitting that the trees that once shaded the home are being used as tops for these tables.
The wire bases of the tables resulted from Charles’s appreciation of what he called “fantastic things being made with wire”—a fascination that led them to experiment with metal wire rods and mesh. They used a technique for simultaneously welding wire rods and designed a number of furnishings that have become modern classics: Eames Wire Chairs, Eames Shell Chairs with wire bases, Eames Storage Units, Eames Elliptical Tables, and the Eames LTR Table.
The Eameses used the small but efficient LTR Tables to host guests in their home. Today, these lightweight, diminutive tables stand on their own, or as an accompanying surface next to beds and chairs.
How to Buy Eames Eucalyptus LTRs
Working together since 1956, Herman Miller and Vitra are the authentic sources of designs by Charles and Ray Eames. Herman Miller and Vitra produced less than 600 of the Eames Eucalyptus LTRs to be made available to collectors and customers alike. In North America, tables will be available through Herman Miller at store.hermanmiller.com, and at Herman Miller’s New York flagship store, for $795. A selection of the tables will also be available in Japan at Herman Miller’s Tokyo retail store for ¥79,500.
In Europe, tables will be available from September through Vitra at vitra.com/store as well as selected dealers for €795. Herman Miller and Vitra also donated a selection of tables to the Eames Foundation, which were raffled off at the membership appreciation event to raise money for the continued preservation of the Eames House property.
About the Eames House
Nestled on the Pacific Coast of California in a copse of eucalyptus trees, the Eames House, built in 1949, is distinguished by its sensitive interaction with its surroundings and creative use of industrial building materials. Built as part of the Arts & Architecture’s famed Case Study House program, Charles and Ray’s Pacific Palisades home—dubbed Case Study House No. 8—is an exemplar of mid-century modernist architecture, and was designated as a National Landmark in 2007. The home is maintained by the Eames Foundation, established in 2004 and primarily funded by Herman Miller, Vitra and the Eames Office.
About Herman Miller
Herman Miller is a globally recognized provider of furnishings and related technologies and services. Since its inception in 1905, the company has relied on innovative design to help people do great things. The global design leader has evolved into Herman Miller Group, a family of brands that collectively offers a variety of products for environments where people live, learn, work, and heal. The family of brands includes Colebrook Bosson Saunders, Design Within Reach, Geiger, HAY, Maars Living Walls, Maharam, naughtone, Nemschoff, and Herman Miller. For more information visit www.hermanmiller.com/about-us
About Vitra
A family business for eighty years, Vitra is a Swiss company dedicated to improving the quality of homes, offices and public spaces through the power of design. Creating innovative products and concepts with great designers is Vitra’s essence. They are developed in Switzerland and installed worldwide by architects, companies and private users. With its classics Vitra represents groundbreaking 20th century design. Since the mid 1950’s Charles and Ray Eames have had a profound and lasting influence on Vitra. It was the encounter with their work that spurred the company's beginnings as a furniture manufacturer. Today, in combining technical and conceptual expertise with the creativity of contemporary designers, Vitra seeks to continue pushing the boundaries of the design discipline. The Vitra Campus with buildings by some of the world’s leading architects and the Vitra Design Museum with its exhibitions on design and architecture, design archives and a comprehensive furniture collection are all part of Vitra. They inspire visitors, inform the design process and create an atmosphere in which innovation flourishes. www.vitra.com
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