I love watching manufacturing processes in general, but this video (made for Herman Miller by the Eames Office in 1970) is extra cool since I have so many of these chairs in my house. I just hope that poor guy trimming the fiberglass was wearing a good dust mask. Yikes.
Music by Buddy Collette.
(Thank you, Catherine, for sharing this with me!)
7 Comments
rad video, no wonder these chairs last forever. i did cringe a little watching that guy pull the excess fiberglass off the chair with his bare hands.
Did you see the notation about newer production techniques at the end? Heh.
I must say, though, the new “safe” polypropylene shell chairs that Vitra makes for HM are just not the same thing. That’s why I only buy vintage.
Ah, you’re welcome! It’s so interesting to see all of the careful crafting and measuring that went into them. If only they weren’t so expensive in Europe… sigh…
Interesting. I’ve been considering, when I have some time, of making some chairs out of a wood veneer mesh using the Herman Miller fiberglass shells as a mould. I got the idea from the work that Joe Harmon is doing, building Splinter (http://www.joeharmondesign.com/). I love the way that the chairs feel, but my better half wants a slightly more formal looking dining room.
This was such an interesting video! I agree about the fiberglass, yikes. Unfortunately that type music so popular at the time always makes me feel anxious so I was on nerves watching all 8 minutes.
I agree about the music. DH sitting next to me while I watched asked if it was like Peter and the Wolf: the hi-hat is the sewing machine and the flute is the clay, and the upright bass is the fiberglass?
are you sure that the music wasn’t ron burgundy on the jazz flute?