Alexander Girard

by Todd Oldham, Kiera Coffee, Alexander Girard (Visual Art)

This massive monograph on seminal designer Alexander Girard covers virtually every aspect of his distinctive career. One of the most prolific mid-20th century designers, Girard’s work spanned many disciplines, including textile design, graphic design, typography, illustration, furniture design, interior design, product design, exhibit design, and architecture. Exhaustively researched and lovingly assembled by designer Todd Oldham, this tome is the definitive must-have book on Girard’s oeuvre.Many of the designs featured here have never before been published. Oldham carefully went through the entire Girard archive to uncover many treasures as well as all of the most recognizable works by Girard. Girard is well known for his bold, colorful, and iconic textile designs for Herman Miller (1952-1975), which are extensively featured. These were often featured in conjunction with furniture designs by his contemporaries Charles and Ray Eames, and George Nelson. His designs for La Fonda del Sol restaurant (1960) are an experiment with typography as a communication tool and large-scale environmental graphic. Textiles and Objects (1961) was a very influential New York store sponsored by Herman Miller that featured Girard's designs inspired by his travels and folk art collection. The Girard Foundation (1962) houses his own personal and extensive collection of folk art, textiles, toys, and objects from around the world. His complete environmental design for Braniff International Airways (1965) gave him the opportunity to work at all scales with color, graphics, textiles, and furniture design. He designed every aspect of the project himself, from the minute-sized sugar packets and the ticket counters to the graphic colors of the planes themselves. Alexander Girard's playful yet sophisticated designs continue to inspire new generations of artists and designers. The breadth and scope of his work is truly remarkable. This highly anticipated tome is the first major retrospective of this very accomplished and prolific designer, and has been painstakingly edited by renowned New York-based designer Todd Oldham.  

Genres: Design, Art

664 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 2011

About the author

Jacky Todd Oldham is an American fashion designer originally from Corpus Christi, Texas. He hosted a segment called "Todd Time" on MTV's House of Style in the 1990s. He produced a clothing line associated with the Warner Brothers Batman Forever. Oldham designs furniture and home accessories for the La-Z-Boy Furniture company and was named creative director for Old Navy effective Oct. 1, 2007.

Oldham is openly gay. He is a member of the board of advocates for Bailey House, the nation's oldest supportive housing program for persons with HIV/AIDS. Additionally, Oldham supports the animal rights movement and has worked with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

Oldham was the host of Top Design on Bravo for the 2007 season.

Reviews

[Avedon Arcadio · Rating 5 out of 5]

A stunning array of history, stories and a multitude of gorgeous art and photography showcasing the amazing legacy of my favorite designer.
A massive undertaking that doesn’t feel all over the place despite some time jumps here and there, are meant to focus on different parts of his work. On top of which is filled with a wonderful amount of referential material for any designer looking to peer briefly into the mind of a creative genius.
I would kill to have some of his sketchbooks in print.

[Tim Lapetino · Rating 5 out of 5]

This treatise on the design, textiles, architecture and furniture of Alexander Gerard is nothing short of stunning. This enormous book is quite exhaustive in documenting and setting Gerard's work into its modern context. The book serves as biography, inspiration, sourcebook and color manual. Gerard so effortlessly crossed design disciplines -- interiors, textiles, architecture, furniture design, illustration, graphic design -- that creatives of every stripe should be able to joyfully appreciate and draw from his amazing work.

This gigantic book is a flood of inspiration and a seemingly-endless flow of inspiration. The text is informative and with personality. Never overwhelming the work or leaving you longing for details. I give the author and all collaborators tons of credit and the book my highest recommendation.

[Beth Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

This would be my desert island book to take with me. It's like a little museum, full of inspiration and color, ...oh what color! it's overwhelming in all the best ways. Alexander is completely amazing. An artist, collector, designer. I am lucky to be able to view this book (for the past 6 months?) because it is in the collection of the Vermont College of Fine Arts where I am getting my MFA degree. I wish I could give it ten stars!