George Nelson was a successful industrial designer with his own office in New York, and from 1946 he was also design director for the Herman Miller furniture company. The furniture that Nelson's office designed for Herman Miller shared many similarities with designs by Charles and Ray Eames, with whom Nelson was friendly. For example, the fibreglass shell and rubber mounts were innovations first first used by the Eameses. The organic, freeform shape of the fibreglass shells that make up the seat unit also relate the chair to contemporary art of the time. The design of the chair has always been attributed to George Nelson himself, although much of the work was undertaken in his office by Charles Pollock, then only in his twenties. It is a characteristic of industrial design offices that products are often collaborations between numerous designers, as well as the manufacturers.