Born in New York City in 1907, Girard was raised and educated in Italy by an American mother and French-Italian father. Much of his most famous work emerged from his time as the director of fabric and textiles at Herman Miller, a position he held from 1952 to 1975. There, he collaborated with George Nelson and Ray Eames on designs that broke new ground for the industry in the US and well beyond. Girard's style was boldly colorful, incorporating geometric patterns and illustrative folk art-inspired imagery. Other notable works of Girard include the branding of Braniff Airlines, the design of New York’s La Fonda del Sol restaurant, and a huge mural at the John Deere headquarters. Today, Girard’s work is distributed by House Industries and some of his textile designs have been re-released through Urban Outfitters and other popular merchants. Girard died in 1993.

Anna has a BFA in Photography from the University of Arizona and lives in San Rafael, California, with her husband and two children.

Alexander George is a writer from New Jersey currently based in San Francisco. He contributes to Wired, Popular Mechanics, the Wirecutter, and Dwell.

Design and fabrication of one-of-a-kind and limited production furniture. Your space should reflect your personality, uniquely yours.

Herman Miller is named after a West Michigan businessman who helped his son-in-law buy the furniture company he worked at in 1923. By the middle of the 20th century, the name Herman Miller had become synonymous with “modern” furniture. Working with legendary designers George Nelson and Charles and Ray Eames, the company produced pieces that would become classics of industrial design. Herman Miller has continued this tradition of working with top designers, including Alexander Girard, Isamu Noguchi, Robert Propst, Bill Stumpf, Don Chadwick, Ayse Birsel, Yves Béhar, and many talented others.

Justin Alexander is a photographer based in Sydney, Australia.

Libby Alexander is the co-founder of The Vintage Bazaar a modern pop-up flea market based in Chicago, Illinois. She covers vintage trends, small business, budget-friendly decor, and design dilemmas on thevintagebazaar.com. Her writing has also been featured on TheHairpin.com.