Eames House: Impressions of Light

Installed within the Eames House Studio, this exhibition explores Charles and Ray Eames’ understanding of their home as a living prism shaped by light, reflection, and texture. Drawing from the Eameses’ personal photography and film, House: After Five Years of Living (1955), and a new, site-responsive installation entitled Sunlight Filtered Through the Eames House (2024) by internationally-renowned artist James Clar, the exhibition reveals light and landscape as active collaborators in the making of place. From the Eameses’ early observations to Clar’s monumental cyanotype banners created using the Studio itself as a lens, the Eames House is presented as an evolving condition rather than a fixed structure.

Presented in conjunction with the exhibition, the Charles & Ray Eames Foundation is releasing a limited series of prints by James Clar. The editions feature Clar’s cyanotype banners, Sunlight Filtered Through the Eames House side by side, distilling hours of shifting light, shadow, and movement into a singular image. All proceeds from the print release will support the preservation and ongoing programming of the Eames House.

Eames House: Impressions of Light is curated by Tommy Gartman and Truly Zanda

Artwork: James Clar, Sunlight Filtered Through The Eames House (Oct 30, 10:20am), (Oct 30, 10:57am), and (Oct 31, 10:25am), 2025. Cyanotypes on Philippine jusi fabric. Installation view Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art at Pepperdine University. Photograph Courtesy of Joshua Schaedel.

James Clar (b. 1979) is a light and media artist interested in new technological production processes and their application to artistic narrative forms. His works utilize the information systems that saturate our daily existence, provoking contemplation on how they shape our understanding of culture and ourselves. By understanding light and the ways we see, his artistic lens explores the modulating effects of perception and narrative dynamics.

This exhibition is made possible through generous support by Aesop

Exhibition design provided by Woods + Dangaran

Special thanks to our founding sponsor Eames Office for the inclusion of historic Eames photographs and film, House: After Five Years of Living