Founded in California in 1994 by Gary Benzel and Todd St. John, Green Lady began as a side project to create and collaborate on experimental work. The line embraced the medium of T-shirts and silk screens as a decidedly non-art, democratic and accessible approach to image-making at a time before independent T-shirt labels were ubiquitous. Introducing visuals through an assumed name played on the anonymity of design, and was a nod to the labels, bands, flyers and brands that were primary forms of visual influence for Benzel and St. John as teenagers. Since 1995, the yearly line of clothing and products grew from a limited production label done mainly for friends, to selling to stores in the US and internationally.

Originally from Las Vegas, Gary Benzel started producing graphic work in the form of zines and flyers, and created silk screens for an imagined skateboard company while in high school. He currently operates his studio and shop, Igloo, in downtown San Diego. Todd St. John grew up in Hawaii, where he began drawing, playing in bands, and shooting photos, videos, and shorts. He moved from California to New York in the mid-nineties and worked as an art director at MTV for two years before founding HunterGatherer in 2000. St. John is also a visiting graduate critic at the Yale School of Art.

Despite living on opposite coasts, Benzel and St. John still collaborate frequently on a range of projects including product design, installations, and film. Their work has been published and exhibited internationally, and both were included in the Cooper-Hewitt’s National Design Triennial "Design Now".

Green Lady: Ten Years is available through Arkitip.

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