Charles and Ray Eames : designers of the twentieth century /

According to the author, "One of the most creative and productive design partnerships in the twentieth century ... visually interesting and technologically adventurous," was that of Charles and Ray Eames, whose furniture, architecture, exhibition designs, films, and multimedia presentations are examined here in great depth. Their lifelong collaboration, their personalities, and even their idiosyncrasies are carefully scrutinized. Ray's contributions are seen from an unapologetically feminist viewpoint and given great importance. The couple's famous furniture of plywood, plastic, and fiberglass is traced through design, production, and marketing. All the Eameses' multifaceted productions, along with their sources of inspiration, are carefully placed in historical and cultural context. The book's production is marred, unfortunately, by fuzzy black-and-white pictures with little contrast and by color plates with too much yellow-orange. Yet, the scholarship of Kirkham (design history, De Montfort Univ., England) is thorough and penetrating with firm judgments. Her book is a model of scholarship about the history of design, significant for its placement and definition of the work of the Eameses in American culture. Chronology, select bibliography, and notes for further sources. W. L. Whitwell; Hollins College