Alexander Girard Vintage Environmental Enrichment Panel for Herman Miller
View Similar Items
Alexander Girard Vintage Environmental Enrichment Panel for Herman Miller
About the Item
- Creator:Alexander Girard (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 46 in (116.84 cm)Width: 46 in (116.84 cm)Depth: 0.5 in (1.27 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1972
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. small imperfections totally in keeping with 50 year old textile.
- Seller Location:Philadelphia, PA
- Reference Number:Seller: 170641stDibs: LU84307170163
Alexander Girard
The director of design for the textiles department at Herman Miller, Inc., from 1952 to 1973, mid-century modern visionary Alexander Girard introduced bright, bouncy colors to upholstery and drapery fabrics, created jaunty graphics for marketing and advertising materials and devised motifs for everything from textiles to ceramics based on his true love: folk art from cultures around the globe.
The son of an American mother and an Italian father, Girard (known as Sandro to his friends) was born in New York City in 1907 but raised in Florence. He came from a creative family — his father was a master woodworker — and Girard began drawing and making his own playthings as a youngster. He had a fascination for nativity crèche tableaux, an enthusiasm that likely was the germ for his later interest in folk art. He went on to earn degrees in architecture at schools in both Rome and London before returning to New York in the 1930s and working in interior design.
By the 1940s, he and his wife, Susan, had moved to Detroit, where Girard was head of design for Detrola, a firm specializing in tabletop radios. The elegant bentwood housings that he developed for the devices won him acclaim, but, more importantly, at Detrola he met Charles Eames. The two became lifelong friends, and it was Eames who drew Girard toward Herman Miller, which had no dedicated textile department until Girard arrived, and most of its furniture was upholstered in mundane, “safe” hues. Girard changed all that, introducing fabrics in vivid shades of red, orange, yellow and blue. His early designs incorporated geometric motifs — stripes, circles, square, triangles and such. But toward the end of the 1950s he began to introduce folk art themes into his designs.
Girard did not collect important or expensive folk pieces. Rather he was drawn to simple objects such as handmade toys, figurines and models of animals, buildings and plants. The fabrics that emerged had whimsical, lighthearted motifs depicting, for example, angels, children, birds and flowers. Toward the end of his term with Herman Miller, in an effort to achieve what he termed “aesthetic functionalism,” Girard produced a group of what he called “Environmental Enrichment” pieces — silk-screened cotton panels emblazoned with various graphic designs, from bold geometric patterns to folk art themes. They were meant to divide spaces in offices or the home in lieu of walls while simultaneously functioning as art. Today, panels of vintage Girard upholstery textiles have become premium collectibles. The designer's furniture is less well known, primarily because most of it was created for private commissions.
Girard’s most lasting contribution may be his folk art collection. He and Susan had begun gathering pieces shortly after their marriage, in 1936. By the 1970s, they had amassed the world’s largest collection of cross-cultural folk art, composed of more than 100,000 pieces from around the world. The Girards donated their holdings to the Museum of International Folk Art, in Santa Fe (where they had moved in the ’60s), quintupling the institution’s collection, and a new wing — named for the Girards — had to be built to hold it.
Find a striking range of vintage Alexander Girard seating, tables, textiles and other furnishings on 1stDibs.
- Framed Kuba Cloth PanelBy KubaLocated in Philadelphia, PAKuba Textile, Geometric Design with elaborate and complex surface decoration. Nicely Framed in a black oak frame. Dates to the mid-70's. Would work in many rooms, nice statement!Category
Vintage 1970s Congolese Arts and Crafts Tapestries
MaterialsRaffia
$1,200 - Gilbert Rohde Cabinet for Herman MillerBy Gilbert Rohde, Herman MillerLocated in Philadelphia, PAGilbert Rohde Cabinet from the Mahogany Series dating to the late 1930's. Refinished about 10 years ago in a Satin Black Finish. Still presents pretty well but not perfect. Retains O...Category
Vintage 1930s American Art Deco Cabinets
MaterialsMetal
- Gilbert Rohde for Herman Miller ShelfBy Gilbert Rohde, Herman MillerLocated in Philadelphia, PAGilbert Rohde for Herman Miller Open Display or Bookshelf. Newly refinished and ready to go! Perfect for your amazing collection! Pe...Category
Vintage 1930s American Art Deco Shelves
MaterialsMahogany
- Eames for Herman Miller LTRT Table Anniversary Edition!By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Philadelphia, PAEames Blue top LTRT Table, part of Herman Miller "Select" Program. Produced in 2012 in red, yellow, and blue. In Clean condition!Category
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
MaterialsMetal
- Gilbert Rohde for Herman Miller Blue Mirror ClockBy Gilbert Rohde, Herman MillerLocated in Philadelphia, PAGilbert Rohde for Herman Miller blue mirror table clock. Rohde introduced a series of clocks in the early 30's that are some of the most amazing des...Category
Vintage 1930s American Machine Age Table Clocks and Desk Clocks
MaterialsAluminum
- Vintage Martin Luther King Jr. Cast Metal PlaqueLocated in Philadelphia, PAVintage Martin Luther King Jr. Plaque Cast metal Great color and patina Ready to hang.Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Wall-mounted Sculptures
MaterialsMetal
- Modern Daniele Papuli for Dilmos Circular Tapestry Polyester Fiber RibbonBy Daniele PapuliLocated in Milan, ITCircular tapestry, for Dilmos Milano, made in polyester fibre ribbon framed, mounted on an aluminum semicircle structure, sewn and fringed by hand. S...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Tapestries
MaterialsPolyester, Ribbon
- Modern Daniele Papuli for Dilmos Circular Tapestry Polyester Fiber RibbonBy Daniele PapuliLocated in Milan, ITCircular tapestry, for Dilmos Milano, made in polyester fibre ribbon framed, mounted on an aluminum semicircle structure, sewn and fringed by hand. S...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Tapestries
MaterialsPolyester, Ribbon
- 1973 Herman Miller Company Summer Picnic PosterBy Herman MillerLocated in Cincinnati, OHA very collectable pop art styled colorful poster from the annual Herman Miller summer picnic . Printed on a slick paper stock depicting a hamburger with...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Posters
MaterialsPaper
- Hand-Woven Craftsman Wall ArtworkLocated in Antwerp, BEWoven; Wall piece; Artwork; Mid-Century Modern; Tapestries; Contemporary Art; Craftsman This Hand-woven wall piece is a true conversation piece. The depth is created by layering d...Category
Vintage 1980s European Mid-Century Modern Contemporary Art
MaterialsFabric
- Horizon Marine Tapestry by Jean Picart Le Doux, Signed, Great ConditionBy Jean Picart Le DouxLocated in Kansas City, MOLarge Jean Picart Le Doux "Horizon Marin" tapestry handwoven at Atelier Pinton in Aubusson France. Signed. Limited edition. Virtually no signs of wear. ...Category
Vintage 1960s French Mid-Century Modern Tapestries
MaterialsWool
- Evelyn Ackerman ERA Signed Mid-Century Modern Woven Floral Tapestry Wall HangingBy Evelyn AckermanLocated in Studio City, CAA fantastic work by famed Mid-Century Modern designer Evelyn Ackerman. Bright and intensely colorful with an elegant design. Evelyn, along with her husband Jerome, began her care...Category
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Tapestries
MaterialsNylon