I first saw an Eames chair while strolling through endless rows of the Alameda flea market. My boyfriend paused in front of an interesting chair and asked if I knew who designed it. I had no idea. He went on to explain that it was created by a husband/wife duo in the 1950's. Intrigued by the curves, type of material, and overall aesthetics of the piece, I asked myself, "How could furniture evoke such movement?" I got home and began to dig into research on the Eameses. I uncovered a story of an artistic power couple in the 1950's whose craft became iconic as well as their partnership. And most inspiring, Ray was one of the first female designers to be recognized for her contributions to the field. 

 

Ray and Charles Eames

I was at a point choreographically where I was wanting to create a piece that had a narrative. And the story of the Eameses fell into my lap. Eighteen months and almost 320 hours in the studio, the dancers and I have created a choreographic language to best fit these two artistic icons. We created phrasework inspired by Charles being an architect, and Ray a painter. We have played with the structure of their furniture, images on the House of Cards, and have pulled characterization elements from old photographs and documentaries. Our costumes resemble what Ray and Charles wore, and the sound score could have been that which they would have listened to in their own home. It has been fun to plug in all the pieces of the Eameses' world into this new work.  

Exploring the House of Cards deck