Collectors of Eames furniture tend to be obsessive, not unlike the designers themselves. I like to think that buyers of Eames furniture care about the shape of screws, rubber disk and footpads because Charles and Ray did. Collectors like to turn things over and upside down, to look at the parts, to explore. By closely examining each piece, you begin to see the furniture differently. You notice the actual string of rope imbedded in the edge of an early Zenith plastic shell. The rope is there because the shells were pulled out of the mold and finished by hand. After that, you cannot help but touch the edge of every shell chair you see. Collectors notice details: the rounded edge of early runners, the graining of plywood, the presence of a label. To a collector, these things matter, they make the difference.

The late Robert Breeze was such a collector. With his partner, Charles Stewart, he built a collection of forties and fifties furniture focusing largely on Eames. A connoisseur of Eames, he drew distinctions between chairs and searched for the earliest examples. A stickler on condition and originality, RobertÕs passion resulted in a fine collection. Many pieces from the Breeze-Stewart Collection are in this sale.

Eames furniture can be collected at all price levels. Charles was always concerned with creating the best design at the lowest cost. There are Eames chairs that sell for under $500; a classic LCW from the original production regularly sells for under $1000 and nearly all the designs sell for under $5000Ñnot inexpensive, but a good value in the context of the larger furniture market. In many ways, now is the perfect time to collect Eames designs. We are still in the window of time when the furniture is available directly from the original owners. The very best designs are still coming to the market, many of which are featured in this sale. The letters from Charles to Eero Saarinen are one example.

Historical artifacts, they are an insight into the past, as when Charles discusses his ambition for the famous Eames house:
"I didn't realize as we were working on it, but by now it seems to be an entirely different conception of residential architecture than we have ever seen before, and we are really hopped up about it, and ready to commit anything short of murder to get it built. . ."

The splint sculpture by Ray Eames is another such item. She uses the utilitarian form of the splint to explore the dynamic nature of curves and negative space. The sculpture is a search for form, but the piece is also as much an expression of joy as a work of art. The idea of fun was never far away from the Eameses. Indeed, it was treated as serious business. The collector sees all of this in the plywood curves.

The special history of the splint also increases the desirability to the collector. The owner of the splint, Parke Meek, was a longtime Eames Office employee. A self-described ÒJack-of-all-trades.Ó In the often challenging environment of the Office, he flourished. Parke is a man who also knows the value of fun, ÒI would wake up in the morning excited to get to work.Ó His creativity, enthusiasm and humor served him well. Today he is often a bit surprised at the attention collectors focus on the past. In seeking to explain that time he will often say, Òlook, we were just having fun.Ó The fun of the Eames Office is our gain.

The Eames photos are another special part of the sale. The Eameses were prolific photographers obsessed with documenting their world. From the early photo of them posed in their Neutra apartment, we see them creating an image of themselves for the world. These photos are not candid snapshots, but a designed view of their life. There was no strict separation between work and life to the Eameses. The energy that went into making a Christmas card was equal to that of a chair or a toy. The staging of a photo would often stop design work in the office. In a letter to Eero, Charles admits, "we show that great talent in which we have come to specialize: taking the longest to do the least job. Proficiency in this is only the result of Ray and I constantly helping each other towards that end."