May the beauty of tradition . . .
The Herman Miller Furniture Company
Zeeland, MI: The Herman Miller Furniture Company, n. d. 16mo. Holiday seasons card. 12pp. Die-cut saddle stitched duplex kromekote sheets in various shapes. Lightly handled, but a nearly fine copy.
4.125 x 5.25-inch holiday card issued by Herman Miller at some late point in the twentieth century, featuring an elaborate set of die cuts that reference the design DNA of the Bauhaus.
“In 1923 Kandinsky proposed a universal correspondence between the three elementary shapes and the three primary colors: the dynamic triangle is inherently yellow, the static square is intrinsically red, and the serence circle is naturally blue. Today, the equation ▲ ◼︎ ● has lost its claim to universality and works instead as a floating sign capable of assuming numerous meanings. Among them is the memory it recalls of the Bauhaus.” — Ellen Lupton and J. Abbott Miller, 1991
George Nelson began his foreword to the 1948 Herman Miller catalog “From the viewpoint of the designer, which is the only viewpoint I can assume with any degree of propriety, the Herman Miller Furniture Company is a rather remarkable institution. Seen solely as a business enterprise, it is probably indistinguishable from thousands of others scattered through the U.S. It is a small company, it is located in a small town, its production facilities are adequate but not unusual, and it is run by the people who own it. What is remarkable about this enterprise is its philosophy—an attitude so deeply felt that to the best of my knowledge it has never been formulated.”
Nelson continued by condensing the Herman Miller philosophy into five points:
• What you make is important.
• Design is an integral part of the business.
• The product must be honest.
• You decide what you will make.
• There is a market for good design.
Seventy years later, Nelson’s condensed points and finale still ring true: “Let the furniture speak for itself.” [hm_2023]