The Eames House consists of two glass and steel rectangular boxes: one is a residence; one, a working studio. They are nestled into a hillside, backed by an eight foot tall by 200 foot long concrete retaining wall. The structures are aligned along a central axis with a court on the ocean side of the House, a court between the two structures, and a parking / utility spot on the Studio far side. At 17 feet tall, each has a mezzanine balcony overlooking a large central room. Public and private spaces are naturally defined by what is easily visible.
When Charles and Ray were home, they would open the curtains and doors and windows. We do too. With doors open, the patios and structures became a long, unified space for living.
Color: The facades are essentially black-painted grids (consisting of eight 7.5 foot bays for the House and five for the Studio), with different-sized inserts of glass (clear, translucent, or wired), grey Cemesto panels (both painted and natural), plaster (off-white, black, blue, and orange/red), aluminum (painted) and specially-treated panels (gold-leaf or a photographic panel). The transparency and translucency of the glass combines effortlessly with the painted colors and wood finishes. In referring to the Eameses’ work, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of History blogged: “In all of their projects, color was a strategic tool; never did they apply hues indiscriminately. Rather, their brilliant palette spotlighted salient points of information that they wanted to convey, capturing both the eyes and minds of viewers.”
Materials: You can see the use of the off-the-shelf components, or the new plywood and plastic materials that the Eameses developed for their furniture. Read more about the materials individually here.
