This packaging design, and especially the elephant itself, really caught my eye. I saw a video about Charles and Ray Eames last year, and I really enjoyed learning about their lives and designs of furniture, architecture, and all kinds of other things. The molded plywood elephant is unmistakably designed by Eames, and it resembles the famous Eames Chair. This collectible miniature elephant is a replica of the sculpture created in the 1940s. Only two prototypes were made, and only one still exists (owned by the Eames family); they were never commercially produced until now to commemorate the 100th birthday of the late Charles Eames.
I really like the simplicity of the elephant and the packaging. The wood used for the box is the same wood (birch) used to make the elephant. It extends the product into the packaging. They go together. The wood for the box is unfinished, and the lettering is bold and simple—condensed sans serif, all caps. It looks like a cargo crate. It's old-fashioned in terms of its opening mechanism (sliding lid). I wish I knew how small it was! I love miniatures, but the book doesn't give that information. I just really love the shape of the elephant, the fact that it's orange, and the cool wooden box (which also comes with shredded paper to "nestle" the elephant like a straw bed). I'd bet this costs a pretty penny. Only 200 were made, and collectors have probably snatched them all up.
Here is a cool article that talks about the original Eames elephant and where it is now:
Where is the Eames elephant now?
Source and Credits:
Kirkpatrick, Janice. New Packaging Design. London: Laurence King, 2009. Print. P. 127.
Pack: Vitra Eames Plywood Elephant Anniversary limited edition
Client: Vitra, Germany
Designer: Elephant: Charles and Ray Eames, USA; Box: Vitra, Germany
Year: Elephant: 1945; Box: 1945
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