Home Sweet Home Cushion - Vitra

Alexander Girard, 1952.

Home Sweet Home Cushion.

Embroidered Pillows with Home Sweet Home motif.

Girard became known for the interior design of the legendary Miller House, for which he personally selected each of the objects. The centrepiece of the house was the so-called "conversation pit", a lounge area located on a lower level, furnished with masonry sofas upholstered in Girard fabrics and decorated with embroidered cushions designed specifically for this environment. Pleasantly firm and carefully embroidered, the Embroidered Pillow features the "Home Sweet Home" motif, selected by Vitra in collaboration with the Girard family from the extensive collection of fabrics and motifs created by the designer.

Born in 1907 in New York City, Alexander Girard was one of the most prominent figures in postwar American design, along with his close friends and colleagues George Nelson and Charles and Ray Eames. The primary focus of his wide-ranging work was textile design: As head of the textile division at Herman Miller, Girard created numerous textiles and products that reflect his love of vivid colors, patterns, and textures. He favored abstract and geometric shapes in a variety of different color constellations, usually with that vivid color range. Their upholstery fabrics are still as optimal and vital as ever, many of them are still produced and sold today. Although he had a degree in architecture, Girard made a name for himself through his long career in the field of furniture design, exhibitions, and interior design, as well as graphic arts. In his long travels, he avidly accumulated textiles from all over the world, which provided him with a rich source of inspiration and ideas. Alexander Girard died in 1993, followed five years later by his wife Susan. She bequeathed the holdings of this collection to the Vitra Design Museum, along with the contents of Girard's studio (hundreds of drawings, prototypes, and textile samples). Girard brought to the design of the twentieth century a touch of joy and sensuality, absent from the austere aesthetics of classic modern furniture.

Along with Charles and Ray Eames and George Nelson, Alexander Girard is one of the most influential representatives of post-war American design. Although the essential point of his heterogeneous work was textile design, he made countless designs. His intense relationship with the popular art of South America, Asia and Eastern Europe was a primary source of inspiration.

Filling: duck semi-down.

Cover fabric: embroidered twill. Light gray color.

Measurements: 40x30cm.