is this an eames chair?

hi folks,

check out the photos of the chair.

what do you think?

is it some kind of prototype, pre-production or just someone's experiment which has nothing to do with the eameses?

fb

i did email the eames...

i did email the eames office about a week ago but they never responded.

that's why i thought some of you enthusiasts/experts might be able to shed some light to it too.

thanks.

Goofy.
Are the legs made of solid bar stock -- or are they hollow ? (The weight alone would tell you.)

Are the leg attachment bolts or fittings buried in the fiberglass ? Do they show on the seat ?

I'm guessing this was somebody's home-made copy, using an original chair as a form or mold. "Hey, dude, lend me your mother's chair -- I promise I won't hurt it." Get out the Saran Wrap . . .

It's a wonderfully coarse fabric -- perhaps chosen because it could be deformed into the necessary shape, without creasing or overlapping ? Note that the fabric is cut "on the bias" -- meaning, with the fibers running diagonally -- which would aid in the draping.

Wonderful artifact -- and probably comfortable ? The texture might be nice to sit on, and inhibit "squirming" or sliding down in the seat ?

tough one...
From the front, I would say "yes that's an eames arm shell." BUT the frame of the xbase looks solid. And no shock mounts. Is it save to say that it's bolted from the top? I think I see nuts on bottom (funny statement). I saw a shell the other day that was eaten up pretty bad by a super abrasive paint remover. It sorta looked like the back of your shell but less uniform.

The bolts are not visible...

The bolts are not visible on the front of the shell and the mounts are embedded in the fiberglass.

The base is definitely solid.

here is a photo of the mounting bolt/nut.

The mystery thickens...

nope
Absolutely not an Eames piece.

There also were no experiments that I have read or heard about that had inset connections.
The fibreglass is also of a newer ilk than the hand laid examples that were early or prototypical. They were always made with hand laid fibres rather than sheets as seen in this example.

100% weekend project or a later knock-off.
Don't bother wasting your time on further research as it will end up as exactly that, wasted time.

Tynellbuyer could do with...
Tynellbuyer could do with learning some manners.

Manners
I think the bad manners comes in when you start talking about research being a waste of time. Glass artist you should know of all people how important research is. It is never a waste.

?
wasting your time as a phrase is not always a negative.
it seems as though those who take it negatively have a bit of complex.
it is kind of like the people , when given a light honk of the horn, turn around and give you the finger and yell at you.

telling someone to stop researching something that you know the ultimate result is seems to be a positive and helpful to me.

i suppose perhaps i could have used other words but it is to the point.
i was simply trying to help the owner of the chair and save them time from pipe dreams about magical "prototypes" or pots of gold beyond the rainbow.

krenit, you strike me as an odd little angry man. why the ire towards me?
very odd.

of course i would buy the chair if it were actually something perhaps. a purchase is a transaction between two people by the way, i don't magically put sellers into trances and steal their shit.. don't hate, appreciate.

good day and i hope i saved the chair owner some time .

I would NOT give up. Even...
I would NOT give up.
Even if it turns out to not be an Eames piece, the story could add much to the value.

Where was it found? If it was in West Michigan?
I have worked for several years with several office furniture companies and have had access to many prototypes.
Often these items are stolen, given away and enter society.
I've seen rooms piled with prototypes.

I think people here should know that a simple chair can spawn hundreds of mold concepts, leg shapes. etc. Companies often mock up several nonsitable full scale models just for a furniture show only to have the parts cannibalized to build revised versions. I have known engineers who have taken home discarded chairs and simply used them in their garage or hunting camp to avoid wasting them. Prototypes aren't special or valuable until recently.

NO ONE can say say this is not a Eames prototype unless they can PROVE it is not by actually showing it being developed for a separate purpose.

many
i have seen many many copies and knockoffs.
it was and is a very well known design.

it could simply be an art school creation, a garage weekend project.. pretty simple to lay out fibreglass over an existing chair and attach a simple rod base onto it.
the inset tabs to hold the screws are as simple as placing them between layers and as simple to set with a ruler.

it 100% is not anything made by the eases office. everything about it is wrong except for the shape.

just my opinion of course but a pretty educated one in my defence.

just trying to help out, no need for others to jump on me.

takeitease

freedomBigelow, Please...
freedomBigelow, Please contact us as we are very interested in purchasing the chair from you. You have something very special and would love to add a missing piece to the story of Charles and Ray Eames.
(edited by DA)

LOL
someone has too much time on their hands.
making a eases screen name and writing a bogus note is pretty extreme.

funny shit.

a little update...
got a response from HM stating that the base might be a variation of the original X-base and they would need more information to determine its origin/lineage.

i don't feel i am wasting my time investigating and researching on the chair since i am having fun doing so and learning a lot along the way.

by the way, the chair was acquired from someone who received it as a gift in the 50's given by his friend who is from michigan.

Do you happen to live near...
Do you happen to live near Oklahoma? I have bought in the past a set of fakes that were so close that I would have to assume that Herman Miller may have had to send this company a cease and desist letter.

Mike