The Girard Flower Table, originally custom-designed by Alexander Girard in the mid-1950s for the iconic Miller House in Columbus, Indiana, is set to make a playful addition to Herman Miller's lifestyle offering.
The Girard Flower Table offers a contemporary interpretation of a blooming flower, featuring a round metal tabletop with scalloped edges and a petal-shaped pattern that forms the base. Available in both small and large sizes, as well as Anthracite and Vivid Red colorways, the table’s versatile design allows it to be arranged together or separately. Crafted from powder-coated steel, it is both functional and durable, suitable for indoor and outdoor use across a variety of settings.
Alexander Girard (1907–1993) was a key figure in American design during the post-war era and the founding director of Herman Miller's textile division in 1952. Over the next two decades, he created a vast array of designs and hundreds of fabrics, characterized by abstract shapes, geometric patterns, and vibrant color compositions. His work infused both offices and homes with a signature blend of playful color and joyful energy.
Throughout the 1950s, Girard collaborated with the renowned architect Eero Saarinen to design the iconic Miller House. The interior seamlessly blended pieces by his contemporaries and friends—George Nelson, Charles and Ray Eames, and Saarinen—with Girard’s own designs, creating a space that radiated warmth and intimacy within its modernist framework. At the heart of the home, Girard’s textiles adorned the genre-defining conversation pit—a sunken lounge with built-in seating. For the centerpiece, Girard designed a custom brass, flower-shaped occasional table, perfectly suited to the space. The table’s top was altered in 1977 but still resides in its original location. In 2022, Girard Studio, co-directed by his grandchildren Aleishall Girard Maxon and Kori Girard, partnered with Vitra to carefully reinterpret the table’s design.
“What Girard brought to modern design was a warmness and a humanity. He wasn’t afraid of using textures and bright colors, which George Nelson and Herman Miller embraced,” says Amy Auscherman, Head of Archives and Brand Heritage at MillerKnoll. “He brought a levity to an otherwise cold perception of modernism at the time, which came through in every room of the Miller House and other well-known interiors he designed—vibrant dining experiences like La Fonda del Sol and L'Etoile—and his showcase personal residences in Grosse Pointe, Michigan and Santa Fe, New Mexico.”