Eames Institute

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Eames Institute

A home for curious problem-solvers. Become a member today to help preserve the Eames legacy and build a community of curious problem-solvers.

https://www.eamesinstitute.org/join-support/

07/31/2025

It’s official. The Eames Institute is now the proud steward of the historic Birkenstock campus in Novato, CA.

Our vision is to adapt the campus into a world-class art and design museum that will hold an array of art exhibitions, makerspaces, workshops, educational programming, and a rotating display of artifacts from the Eames Collection and other important designers from around the world. Our plan also encompasses accessible public open space as well as culinary and retail offerings.

The Swiss architecture firm in partnership with San Francisco-based is leading the design of the campus, with deep regard for its design legacy and the iconic buildings located there.

This is just the beginning. Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news and updates or head to the link in bio for more information on the fascinating history of the Birkenstock campus.

📸: Conceptual rendering by . Historical image shows the McGraw-Hill campus.

07/16/2025

We're thrilled to announce (LMP)—a Swiss independent publishing house renowned for its authoritative titles on architecture, design, and visual culture—is now a part of the Eames Institute of Infinite Curiosity.

This alignment unites two mission‑driven entities committed to championing design as a catalyst for positive change. By integrating LMP’s globally recognized editorial program with the Institute’s expansive collection, research, and educational initiatives, the combined organization will broaden public access to seminal ideas, objects, and publications that inspire creative inquiry.

Building on this foundation, LMP will be further strengthened by the continued active involvement of its founder, Lars Müller, who will actively guide the publishing program over the coming years. In addition, the founders of the acclaimed Zurich studio —Jonas Voegeli and Kerstin Landis—are joining Lars Müller Publishers, bringing internationally recognized expertise in editorial and visual communication to enrich future projects.

“We are pleased to enter this new chapter in collaboration with the Eames Institute of Infinite Curiosity,” says Lars Müller. “This partnership will nurture the editorial independence, intellectual rigor, and design ethos that have long defined our work, while also creating new opportunities for purposeful publishing.

05/28/2025

Mark your calendars 📆 See our full list of events at the link in bio.

02/14/2024

What three words do you want to hear most this Valentine's Day? We'll start: creative is approved.

02/09/2024

As modernist designers living in Michigan, the orbits of Alexander "Sandro" Girard and the Eameses were destined to collide. With shared friends (Eero Saarinen and Saul Steinberg, to name two) and clients (Herman Miller), the Eameses soon found lifelong friends in Sandro and his wife, Susan. This letter from Ray to Sandro and Susan—her "valentines"—is one of many in the Eames Collection that distills their effortless shorthand shared only between the best of friends.

Tag the "S+S" to your RE+CE in the comments ❤️

08/05/2022

Ray and Charles introduced fiberglass shell chairs with ganging and stacking bases for in 1954. This promotional illustrates both aspects of the expanded functionality offered by the new design—albeit with some adventurous behavior that would be unsanctioned in most institutional settings!

08/02/2022

𝐔𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐝, 𝐑𝐚𝐲 𝐄𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬, 𝟏𝟗𝟑𝟕

Ray became a founding member of the AAA (American Abstract Artists) to support modern art when museums and galleries refused to display it, participated in AAA’s inaugural exhibition in 1937, and was published in their subsequent catalogs for 1938 and 1939. She would later write, “My interest in painting is the rediscovery of form through movement and balance and depth and light—using this medium to recreate, in a satisfying order, my experiences of this world with a desire to increase our pleasure, expand our perceptions, enrich our lives.” This untitled still life (w/ 🍐) dates from her years studying at the Hans Hofmann School of Fine Arts in New York City.

07/29/2022

Another Friday, another ! There are a number of passports in the , including this document issued to by the on October 19, 1954. The passport was initially valid for two years, and renewed for another two years on September 6, 1956. At this stage in their careers—especially after a much celebrated appearance in the 1954 Milan Triennale—the Eameses were well on their way toward global recognition. As such, in addition to a handful of European countries, the passport includes visas from such far-flung destinations as Turkey, Iran, India, and Japan. The detailed “Description of bearer” notes Ray's height as 5 feet and 1 inch, and calls out a “pock mark near right eye” among the “distinguishing marks or features” (harsh). In a retaliatory act of civil disobedience (that would no longer pass muster), Ray—always secretive about her birthday and date of birth—altered the official typewritten “Dec. 15, 1912” to read “1918.”

07/27/2022

𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞 (𝐒𝐭. 𝐋𝐨𝐮𝐢𝐬 𝐌𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐥 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚), 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐄𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬, 𝟏𝟗𝟑𝟐

Charles’s lifelong interest in problem-solving is evident in his formative adult years, as he dabbled in just about every artistic medium. At Washington University (1925–1928) he received two first-place awards for the design of a bandstand and park pavilion. He also undertook printmaking, weaving, pottery, product design, and stage design as a member of the St. Louis Paint and Putter Club, which was both a social forum and a place of learning. Around 1932–1933, he designed sets for the St. Louis Municipal Opera outdoor theatre (still operating today in the city’s Forest Park). Characteristic of his natural curiosity as to how things work, Charles chose to paint the backstage area of the set in this small oil painting. The constructed back wall and stage brace of the set can be seen on the right. The central access ramp and rolling staircase is for the actors’ use, and in the distance, the columnar arcade that defines the top of the amphitheater is shown across the horizon line. Some ten years later, in Los Angeles during the early 1940s, Charles also worked as a set designer for the MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) art department, and became close companions with film director Billy Wilder.

𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑁𝑜𝑡𝑒𝑠 𝑏𝑦

07/21/2022

By connecting art and anthropology to materiality and improvisation, furniture designer creates work that embodies new histories of craft. Point your cursors to Kazam! Magazine (via the link in our bio) for his full Design Q&A interview.⁠

📸 by

06/08/2022

This week the is putting a spotlight on the three artists we collaborated with on a portfolio of limited-edition silk-screen prints—meticulously crafted by —to help inaugurate our launch. Stay tuned tomorrow to learn how to win a complete set of prints.

Completing the series is Los Angeles-based artist , who tells us “this artwork came from wanting to better understand and synthesize my own interpretation of Ray and Charles Eameses’ oeuvre. I wanted the artwork to capture the spirit of their work—which I believe was their hunger for form, playful use of color, and relentless creativity.”

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1330 S 51st Street
Richmond, CA
94804

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+17077651717

Website

http://eamesinstitute.org/, https://www.eamesinstitute.org/join-support/#membership

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