Of Tools and 10s: A Celebration of Works by Charles and Ray Eames

Through their furniture and industrial designs, films, exhibitions, toys and architecture, American designers Charles and Ray Eames applied a special blend of playful and intellectual curiosity toward a diverse range of subjects. In 1977 they created Powers of Ten, a breathtaking film exploring the relative scale of the universe in factors of ten.

To celebrate this work, the Exploratorium hosts activities and films throughout the day, including a presentation by the visiting artist collective Futurefarmers that examines the effects of tools on the production of knowledge.

The Short Films of Charles and Ray Eames McBean Theater
2 p.m.

From depictions of bread making to planetary motions, the strength of the Eames' filmmaking lay in their ability to translate complex principles into elegant meditations on who we are and how we see the world.

Powers of Ten (1977, 9 min., 16mm) In 1977, Charles and Ray Eames -two of the most important American designers of the 20th century-made a short but memorable film bridging the nanoscale world of a single atom and the potentially limitless expanse of the universe itself.

Eames Lounge Chair (1956, 2 min.) This short depicts the assembly of the famous chair at warp speed.

IBM Mathematics Peep Shows (1961, 10 min.) Charles and Ray Eames created a series of two-minute animated shorts exploring topology, symmetry, functions, numbers squared, and Eratosthenes' sieve. They were made for the original IBM exhibition Mathematica: A World of Numbers…and Beyond.

Bread (1953, 6 min.) A romantic and lingering study of the staple food perfected over centuries and cultures.

Tocotta for Toy Trains (1957, 14 min., 16mm) This cinematic gem immerses the viewer in richly painted sets where vintage toy trains journey past toy people, props, and scenery.

Tool Raising
4 p.m.

The artist collective Futurefarmers demonstrate and discuss tools that enable us to see beyond our biological perceptions, thereby affecting our understanding of the world. This event concludes a DIY tool workshop held earlier in the day with Futurefarmers and a cadre of artists and makers. Workshop participants will give a show-and-tell of their results as well as a demonstration of related phenomena.

The Tinkering Studio
Toying with Tops
11 a.m.–2 p.m.
Make your own spinning tops while enjoying the film Tops by Charles & Ray Eames.

Tops (1969, 7 min.) A playful taxonomy of hand-crafted toys that balance with a simple spin, Tops fills the screen with a mesmerizing array of whirling colors, shapes, and sizes.