"To whom does design address itself: to the greatest number, to the specialist of an enlightened matter, to a privileged social class? Design addresses itself to the need." -Charles Eames

Aluminum Group chairs were originally developed in 1958 as a special project by Ray Eames for a private residence being designed by Eero Saarinen and Alexander Girard. At the time, the furniture was called the "leisure group," or "indoor-outdoor group" since it was meant to address the lack of quality outdoor furniture on the market.

To ready the chairs and ottoman for outdoor use, Herman Miller developed a new fabric that would be durable enough to weather the elements and still feel good against the skin when you're wearing a bathing suit. Designed by materials consultant Susan Lyons, Outdoor Weave retains the spirit of the original 1958 polyester saran and builds off the technical capabilities of the Aeron chair's Pellicle suspension fabric. Outdoor Weave combines a sturdy monofilament polypropylene for strength and elasticity, with four multifilament polypropylene yarns to give it a great look and feel. It's also recyclable and contains no harmful PVC. It is available in five tones selected to complement the white and graphite satin powder-coated frames.

With the newly updated versions of the lounge chair, side chair, and ottoman with a range of highly durable finish options including Outdoor Weave fabric, the Aluminum Group Lounge Chair, Side Chair, and Ottoman are once again ready to go back to their roots-outdoors. The side chair is suitable for any location where an outdoor dining-height chair is called for.

The aluminum outdoor ottoman features a 4-star base with glides and available in your choice of frame and fabric options.