ABSTRACT
The Charles and Ray Eames envisioned a new conceptual approach for the production of culture, a comprehensive, interconnected system of resources. The ordering, processing, and representational values associated with the production and dissemination of information led to an ethics of individual agency. Quoting from the Bhagavad Gita in the preface to their 1958 India Report, the Eameses' wrote, 'People have the right to work, but for the work's sake only. Desire for the fruits of work must never be their motive in working'. By creating the film Banana Leaf in 1972, Charles and Ray Eames sought to induce change within each person, challenging conventional perceptions of what constitutes wealth, while conveying that the earning and spending of money entails making moral decisions. In keeping with the Eameses' strategies for organizing and disseminating knowledge, all designers should consider the consequences of their work for society.
