Charles Eames for Herman Miller Low DAX Shell Armchair
About the Item
- Creator:Charles and Ray Eames (Designer),Herman Miller (Manufacturer)
- Design:Eames DAX ChairEames Shell Chairs Series
- Dimensions:Height: 27.25 in (69.22 cm)Width: 25.5 in (64.77 cm)Depth: 31.25 in (79.38 cm)Seat Height: 15 in (38.1 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. vintage condition, free of chips, some age related wear to fiberglass.
- Seller Location:St. Louis, MO
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU820213358831
Eames DAX Chair
The scooped form of the revolutionary single-shell Eames molded fiberglass armchair — of which the Eames DAX chair is a variation — is ubiquitous in interior design today, found everywhere from restaurants to private homes to offices. In 1948, American designers Charles and Ray Eames (1907–78; 1912–88) conceptualized a lounge chair comprising two bonded fiberglass shells as well as a molded fiberglass armchair for the Museum of Modern Art’s International Competition for Low-Cost Furniture Design in New York City. The latter took second prize, and the Eames molded fiberglass armchair as we know it was born and brought to market two years later.
Charles and Ray met at Michigan’s Cranbrook Academy of Art, a breeding ground for some of the best-known mid-century modern designers in America. They collaborated on various projects before getting married in 1941. After establishing the Eames Office in Los Angeles, California, Charles and Ray would garner universal renown for their pioneering work in architecture, film, graphic design and furniture, producing timeless designs in their lounge chair, DCW chair and many more.
Partly an evolution of the molded plywood experimentation conducted by Charles and Eero Saarinen — with lesser heralded assistance from Ray — the Eames fiberglass armchair system featured a fiberglass-reinforced plastic seat positioned atop a variety of bases. DAX is an acronym for Dining (D) Armchair (A) on X-Base (X), referring to the height of the chair, the style of the chair’s body and the base of the chair. Today Eames DAX chairs, supported by a four-legged tubular steel base, are manufactured by Herman Miller and Vitra, both of which produce a fiberglass model as well as a polypropylene version.
Charles and Ray Eames
Charles Eames and Ray Eames were the embodiment of the inventiveness, energy and optimism at the heart of mid-century modern American design, and have been recognized as the most influential designers of the 20th century.
As furniture designers, filmmakers, artists, textile and graphic designers and even toy and puzzle makers, the Eameses were a visionary and effective force for the notion that design should be an agent of positive change. They are the happy, ever-curious, ever-adventurous faces of modernism.
Charles (1907–78) studied architecture and industrial design. Ray (née Beatrice Alexandra Kaiser, 1912–88) was an artist, who studied under the Abstract Expressionist painter Hans Hofmann. They met in 1940 at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in suburban Detroit (the legendary institution where Charles also met his frequent collaborator Eero Saarinen and the artist and designer Harry Bertoia) and married the next year.
His technical skills and her artistic flair were wonderfully complementary. They moved to Los Angeles in 1941, where Charles worked on set design for MGM. In the evenings at their apartment, they experimented with molded plywood using a handmade heat-and-pressurization device they called the “Kazam!” machine. The next year, they won a contract from the U.S. Navy for lightweight plywood leg splints for wounded servicemen — they are coveted collectibles today; more so those that Ray used to make sculptures.
The Navy contract allowed Charles to open a professional studio, and the attention-grabbing plywood furniture the firm produced prompted George Nelson, the director of design of the furniture-maker Herman Miller Inc., to enlist Charles and (by association, if not by contract) Ray in 1946. Some of the first Eames items to emerge from Herman Miller are now classics: the LCW, or Lounge Chair Wood, and the DCM, or Dining Chair Metal, supported by tubular steel.
The Eameses eagerly embraced new technology and materials, and one of their peculiar talents was to imbue their supremely modern design with references to folk traditions. Their Wire chair group of the 1950s, for example, was inspired by basket weaving techniques. The populist notion of “good design for all” drove their molded fiberglass chair series that same decade, and also produced the organic-form, ever-delightful La Chaise. In 1956 the Eames lounge chair and ottoman appeared — the supremely comfortable plywood-base-and-leather-upholstery creation that will likely live in homes as long as there are people with good taste and sense.
Charles Eames once said, “The role of the designer is that of a very good, thoughtful host anticipating the needs of his guests.” For very good collectors and thoughtful interior designers, a piece of design by the Eameses, the closer produced to original conception the better, is almost de rigueur — for its beauty and comfort, and not least as a tribute to the creative legacy and enduring influence of Charles and Ray Eames.
The collection of original Eames furniture on 1stDibs includes chairs, tables, case pieces and other items.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: St. Louis, MO
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 3 days of delivery.
- Early Charles Eames for Herman Miller Red Aniline DCMBy Charles Eames, Herman MillerLocated in St. Louis, MOEarly Charles Eames for Herman Miller red Aniline stained DCM with early glides, no label. Shock mounts are still solid, there is wear and loss to fi...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsPlywood
- Charles Eames for Herman Miller Zebrawood DCM Chairs, RareBy Charles Eames, Herman MillerLocated in St. Louis, MOCharles Eames for Herman Miller Zebrawood DCM chairs, rare set. Zebrawood was used from 1954-1959. Very nice original condition, minor scuffs to seat. Labels.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsChrome
- Rare and Elegant Edward Wormley for Dunbar Lounge ArmchairBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in St. Louis, MOEdward Wormley for Dunbar lounge chair. Model number 6309, part of the Today and Tomorrow collection, circa 1963. Beautiful channelled mahogany frame with ultra-suede seat and back c...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMahogany
- Pair of Early 1940s Edward J. Wormley Armchairs for DunbarBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in St. Louis, MOPair of early 1940s Edward J. Wormley Elegant neoclassical style occasional arm chairs for Dunbar model No. 116B. As shown in The Other Face of Modernism book on Wormley an in the 19...Category
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsMahogany
- Set of Eight Edward Wormley for Dunbar Dining ArmchairsBy Edward Wormley, Dunbar FurnitureLocated in St. Louis, MOEdward Wormley for Dunbar Model number 842, set of eight armchairs in mahogany with red velvet seats. All original, minor touch up prior to shipping. These chairs were used around a ...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Mahogany
- 1970s Edward Wormley for Dunbar Ash with Aluminum Frame Upholstered ArmchairBy Dunbar FurnitureLocated in St. Louis, MOMid-Century Modern Edward Wormley for Dunbar model #979 CH, Oiled ash frame with flat Aluminum bar cross stretchers, with upholstered arms back and seat. Paper label. Upholstery and ...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsAluminum
- 1950s Eames for Herman Miller Dax Fiberglass Shell Armchair ParchmentBy Charles and Ray Eames, Herman MillerLocated in Chula Vista, CAGorgeous early production 1950s classic Eames for Herman Miller Dax Molded Fiberglass Shell Armchair parchment with black metal base 31 h x 24.5 w x 23.5 d Arm rest 25 Seat 18 Preow...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsMetal
- Eames for Herman Miller Dax Shell Arm ChairBy Herman Miller, Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Chicago, ILEames for Herman Miller DAX fiberglass chair in butter yellow. 1970’s. Herman Miller stamp on bottom of shell. Condition: Overall good to very ...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Charles and Ray Eames DAX armchair by Herman MillerBy Herman Miller, Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Athens, AttikiThe DAX chair combines the shell of the 'Eames armchairs' with a classic four-legged base and is thus a realisation of the chair concept created by Charles and Ray Eames in the 1950s. Thanks to its relatively simple appearance, the dax chair is undoubtedly the most versatile of Eames plastic chairs...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsMetal
- Early Zenith Parchment DAX Fiberglass Shell Armchair for Herman MillerBy Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames, ZenithLocated in San Jose, CAIconic design (DAX) dining armchair x-base by Ray and Charles Eames, circa early 1950's. This second generation parchment colored armchair retains a high gloss finish supported by th...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsSteel
- Herman Miller Eames DAX Fiberglass ChairBy Herman Miller, Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Brooklyn, NYGorgeous and rare hue of red orange on this vintage fiberglass Herman Miller Eames armchair. Model DAX with H base. All shock mounts intact. Stamped Herman Miller under chair and gua...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFiberglass
- Charles Eames for Herman Miller Early Pair of Dax Transitional Shell ChairsBy Herman Miller, Charles EamesLocated in Chicago, ILExcellent early example of a pair of Transitional Herman Miller Dax red/orange armshell chairs. All original. Early black X-base with large shock mou...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFiberglass
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
The 21 Most Popular Mid-Century Modern Chairs
You know the designs, now get the stories about how they came to be.
A Guide to Herman Miller’s Most Iconic Furniture
The prolific manufacturer has partnered with many of the world’s top designers since opening its doors in 1923. Here are some of the company’s greatest hits, which helped transform the American home and office.