A short film made by Charles & Ray Eames of their house, Case Study House #8, after five years of living in it. You can find out more about the house and the Eameses at the Eames Foundation website. eamesfoundation.org/
The real life of architects is not at all the minimalist appearance as their works, but rather a pleasant mixture of all things. It's a reminder that we design for real-life, their film is also their manifesto.
A world of wonder. These movies (and others like them made in the early 1960s) were very special to a lot of children who grew up to be interested in the phenomenal world all around them. The style of this movie, with its special music. I think it is actually more interesting than the super slick things children watch today. Pokémon Go indeed! Ha! Stay in reality and learn!
Used to clean a house from the '50s or '60s that when the new owner bought, they just let the wiring burn the house down and then re-built a Mediterranean monstrosity. If I had the money, I'd buy it, just to tear it down and then re-build it in the art deco version that it was originally.
There might be short clips, there might be also stills. If those taken outside are short clips, there must have been absolutely no wind when they were taken. But that's not important. It's the impression, the feeling.
As a carpenter-contractor for 56 yrs, I don't find this very useful as architecture on a human scale for human use, the way that Frank Lloyd Wright was, for example, amongst other architects, such as the Greene Brothers. The Eames wanted humans to adapt to the industrialised age, whereas the industrial age should be made to adapt to humans! I think the Eames were superb designers of small-scale environments, perhaps some furniture & other accessories, I surely would not want to live in one of their industrial style habitats for humanity. They seem to have been overwhelmed by Mondrian and never quite escaped the influence. But I think the overall effect inhibits human response: just one example that I caught immediately: it's difficult to find a door without examining the entire wall, but as FLW pointed out, that should be something that leaps out at you. Look at his entry for the Guggenheim Museum in NYC, NY, or any residential or commercial design of his. Nuff said!
Well, I'd submit that these great mid-century designers understood as much of what you're saying. Most of us regard housing as a basic necessity and don't have much choice in the styling. Practicalities such as low building costs and low-maintainance reliable roofs are going to feature. The boxy, open-space, industrial styling of the house is more proof-of-concept as far as living spaces go. I doubt I would ever feel comfortable owning this house, since it's more of a museum than house, but I am glad that it exists, and it's clear that they had a strong affinity for nature and humanity as shown in this movie. Compared to most modern buildings and our overall pop culture, I would say that FLW and other, similar designers of that era are a godsend for their contributions
Philip Johnson said that Frank Loyd Wright was the greatest architect of the 19th century. what Charles and Rey Eames taught me was that you could say to your realtor, I want to live in a garage. Find me a four car garage with a concrete floor and ceiling and let me go at it. I did, in real life and I am amazed how much I have been influenced by these two though my space looks nothing like theirs, although I do have several pieces of Eames small scale furniture.
At some point I was hoping to see some actual images of this famous home. Apparently not. Which is probably good as it's too sophisticated for me to comprehend and appreciate. Thanks
