Yesterday's date, August 21st, occupies a unique place in architectural and design history as the day when Charles and Ray Eames both passed away, separated by a decade (1978 and 1988), respectively.

The shared life and work of the iconic power couple has since become the subject of numerous books, catalogs, museum retrospectives, and an excellent 2011 documentary (to name only a few), and enjoys an outsized place in the rich lineage of other husband-and-wife architectural partnerships continued today by the work of SO – IL, TWBTA, Höweler + Yoon, DS+R, and many others.

From the possible influence on early hip-hop carried on later by Ice Cube and Michael Ford, to Ray’s rediscovered RIBA Gold Medal speech, the studio’s legacy as ongoing source of inspiration, and the tranquility of watching perhaps their most famous design being assembled by hand, Archinect has explored the output of their relationship from a number of different angles over the years. All are exemplary of the many mediums into which their combined creative talents were channeled. Now, in honor of their symmetrical existence, we put together a list of the best lesser-known Eames designs taken from the dynamic duo’s prolific four-decade career.

1. Griffith Park Rail Station, Los Angeles (1957)

The now-defunct railroad station and typography were important both as an invocation of Charles’ childhood fascination with trains and the couple’s desire to elevate the role of play in design, as embodied in the former’s remark that such activity was "the prelude to serious ideas." 

2. St. Mary’s Church, Paragould, Arkansas (1935)

The second of two early religious commissions undertaken by Charles shortly prior to his enrollment in the Cranbrook Academy (where he met Ray in 1940), the small church is a reinterpretation of Romanesque Revival architecture and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2015. 

3. IBM Pavilion at the 1964 World's Fair, New York (1964)

Designed together with longtime Eames associate Eero Saarinen, the pavilion was usurped only by Buckminster Fuller’s geodesic dome and stood as a showcase of the technology giant with a comprehensive program of films, 500-seat People’s Wall theater feature, and other exhibitions that were tied together with a musical score from composer Elmer Bernstein.

4. Phillip Dunne Office (1952)

Per Eames Office: "The head screenplay writer at Twentieth Century Fox, Philip Dunne, asked Charles and Ray to redesign the interior of his office in the 'Old Writers Building' in 1952. Dunne wanted the L-shaped interior of his otherwise English cottage-inspired office building to include a modern-style conference area and small seating arrangement. Completing the lounge space was an Eero Saarinen Womb Chair, a marble-topped occasional table, and a telephone stand they built from standardized materials. The conference area included a large plywood-topped table, a drafting table made from ESU materials, plywood DCM chairs, and plastic armchairs."

5. The Meyer House, Helena, Arkansas (1938)

One of a handful of area residential projects completed by the St. Louis native Charles, The Meyer House is seen as an important early project that would eventually garner the attention of Eliel Saarinen, whose son would later create the city’s most iconic structure. 

6. High Back Wire Chair (1951)

Per Eames Office: "The Eames 1951 High Back Wire Chair was a step on the road that led to the eventual development of the famous Eames Lounge Chair. First, they tried to make lounge chairs out of wood, with no upholstery, then they made this model, a high back wire chair with arms, onto which upholstery could be attached. Again, the high cost of production of such a chair, with its myriad wire connections, led them to abandon this lounge chair iteration, but echoes of its form can be seen in the later and very successful Eames Lounge Chair."

7. Minimum Chair (1948)

The design was one of two (along with La Chaise) that the pair submitted to the MoMA’s Low-Cost Furniture Competition with help from engineering experts at UCLA. It was considered too radical for the competition’s jurists to even comment on and would later go on to inform the more popular Shell Chair design, which was more easily mass-produced. 

8. Kazam! Machine (1941)

More than any other entry on this list, the Kazam! Machine stands out for its ingenuity and further application in the creation of molded plywood forms that would later go on to become some of the couple’s most commercially successful furniture designs. 

9. Stephens Speaker (1956)

For Stephens Trusonic, Inc., Eames’ design leveraged a knowledge of plywood molding used previously in the Easy Chair and Case Goods system designs to create a rebranded four-model offering that revolutionized home audio systems and Hi-Fi technology for years to come.

10. Arm Splint (1943)

Tasked with designing a more stabilizing medical device for the U.S. Navy following the outbreak of World War II, the Eameses incorporated the same wood-bending technique used in their Kazam! Machine (see above) in order to create a design that better distributed vibrations during the important task of evacuating wounded troops to field hospitals. The splints likely saved thousands from amputation or permanent damage. Its body-hugging form would later be applied successfully to the first of several furniture designs which became the business's bread and butter. 

(Bonus) Computer Glossary Poster for IBM (1968)

This was a supplement to one of many educational films the couple made for IBM in the 1950s and '60s. (More information about their first major corporate collaboration can be found here.)