Eames Hack is part of a DIY-focused charette by a team of industrial design students at University of the Arts in Philadelphia. They modded two iconic Eames chairs with the intent of liberating "these once iconic, elite, forms." And while the shell chair toilet seat is certainly a challenge to tasteful design, turning a molded ply dining chair into a high chair would probably just set off a one-upping frenzy. An actual--or even a viable--Eames high chair would be the bomb among design snobby parents.

The cutouts for the legs are awesome; they look like a weird phase shift, like the kid's passing, Kitty Pride-style, through the chair. [Or maybe he's on his way down to the Night Kitchen.]

But the tray kind of bugs. While I can appreciate the provocative roughness of sticking a white plastic POS from Wal-Mart on there, I would think that "a fulfillment of [the Eameses'] original ideals" should look a lot sweeter.

Why not chop up an Eames molded ply coffee table to make the tray? Or better yet, do a mashup with a George Nelson Tray Table:

Or if the hacked effect is really important, why not heist an old shool fiberglass cafeteria tray? It'd be a nice Eames reference to boot.

Eames Hack the team's project blog, with a few extra photos [eameshack.blogspot.com]
via University of the Arts students hack Eames classics [core77.com]