Once again our unique and versatile Abstracta Modular Display System is an integral part of an impressive exhibit of design talents. Abstracta is now featured in Herman Miller’s Chicago showroom on the 3rd floor of the Merchandise Mart. The photos here show our 13mm (1/2″) tubing in white powder coat recently installed as part of NEOCON 2012. NEOCON – “where the design world comes together” – is the annual design event for the contract furniture industry. And, most anyone who visits NEOCON, visits the Herman Miller Showroom.

Abstracta was chosen as the display medium by Michael McGinn Design as the “natural setting” to display the history of one of Herman Miller’s earliest and most formidable designers, Alexander Girard.

In the words of the Herman Miller blog:

“Trained as an architect, but proficient in all manner of activities, Alexander Girard was introduced to Herman Miller through Charles Eames and George Nelson. He established the Herman Miller Textile Division in 1952, and served as its Director of Design until 1973. From his outpost in Santa Fe, New Mexico, he designed over 300 textiles in multitudes of colorways, multiple collections of wallpaper, decorative prints and wall hangings, an expansive group of furniture, and both decorative and useful objects.”

His textiles and objects, although wonderful and intriguing on their own, seemed even more dynamic and brilliant in the thoughtful, seemingly simple (although very complex!) setting of the slim, white Abstracta forms and “just right” spot lighting and traffic patterns throughout the exhibit.

The Girard exhibit comprises about 1,000 square feet of the extensive Herman Miller Showroom. The exhibit will be up for almost one year and may travel a bit after that to other venues. The 1,400+ Abstracta tubes and 800+ connectors were all pre-cut and finished prior to being delivered to the site and the McGinn Design team had the entire structure up in about three days! An impressive and amazing feat.
We at Consort are also pleased with Michael McGinn’s thoughtful words when we saw him at the exhibit on opening day: “I would say that for this audience the second most popular thing about the exhibit, after Alexander Girard, is Abstracta. I overheard many remarks about its simple beauty.”

Thank you Michael for choosing Abstracta!