GARZA MARFA

Creating Marfa-inspired furniture

Garza Marfa owners Jamey Garza and Constance Holt-Garza.  Photo by Rob Howard. 

Low-Back Saddle Leather Dining Chairs and Cafe Table.

Jamey Garza puts the finishing touches on a saddle leather dining chair

 A few blocks off Marfa’s main street, in an old metal building that once was a West Texas Utilities storage facility, Jamey Garza and Constance Holt-Garza are creating a unique style of furniture that is gaining national recognition.
  Garza Marfa’s handmade chairs, tables, benches and stools have been described as natural, durable and honest, functional and decorative. Crafted using rich saddle leather, native Texas pecan, oak and walnut, coated steel and canvas, each piece evokes a sense of rural Texas with elements of Donald Judd’s minimalism. These essential pieces are perfectly complemented by Constance’s vividly colored hand-sewn napkins, placemats and pillows made from vintage fabrics.
  Both Jamey and Constance have backgrounds in art, design and fabrication. A San Francisco native, Constance studied art history and photography before designing a clothing line for Salon de The, a boutique clothing store which she owned and operated for several years. Jamey left his hometown of Austin to earn a Master of Fine Arts from the San Francisco Art Institute. After graduating, he supported his painting studio by designing and

Saddle Leather Cot with Vintage Hand-Sewn Pillows

Saddle Leather Oval Chair

Constance Holt-Garza works with vintage textiles

building custom furniture and display fixtures for art galleries and commercial clients. Jamey met Constance when her boutique became one of his clients.
  In 1998, hotelier Liz Lambert employed Jamey to design and build furniture for her renovation of Hotel San Jose in Austin. Five years later, she requested his help renovating Marfa’s Thunderbird Hotel.
  The couple decided to call Marfa home, and upon completion of the Thunderbird, they considered their next step. Constance recalls that “After having done mostly commissioned projects for 15 of the past 23 years, we decided that we wanted more control over what we were making.” Inspired by the beauty of the vast Marfa Plateau and the simplicity of Judd’s furniture designs, the husband-and-wife team began designing the first Garza Marfa prototypes. In 2012, they officially launched their Garza Marfa line.
  “We are really happy with the way our designs have been received… and the fact that Garza Marfa pieces have been shipped all across the country,” says Constance. “We just knew that we wanted to create a comprehensive group of furniture and textiles that reflected our aesthetic…and hoped there’d be people out there that would want them.” 
  To view the entire Garza Marfa line, visit them online at www.garzamarfa.com or call for an appointment. But don’t wait too long to place your order. Due to high demand for the handmade pieces, there’s a three-month lead time.
- by Kay Plavidal