Irwin Miller extends congratulations to Girard and Saarinen for “expressing so well what we want in our house,” but adds, “Xenia is still skeptical about the steps down into the living room, and I agree that these may appear formidable to older ladies.” 

J. Irwin Miller to Alexander H. Girard, 19 March 1954, 1/2, Miller House and Garden Collection, IMA Archives, Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis, Indiana. (MHG_Ia_B001_f002_104-105)

Saarinen writes to Girard telling him how the Millers have responded to an early design. The Millers “liked the one story concept,” but “Zenia [sic] is skeptical about the steps in the living room.”

Eero Saarinen to Alexander H. Girard, 10 March 1954, 1/2, Miller House and Garden Collection, IMA Archives, Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis, Indiana. (MHG_Ia_B001_f002_118-121)

Alexander Girard selected his Quatrefoil textile design for use as curtains in the four children’s bedrooms at the Miller House. The curtains for the girls’ bedrooms were made of plain Fortisan and the boys’ bedroom curtains were made of plain ecru linen. Each room had a different color curtain. Room 33 had color #629 (upper left), room 34 had #627 (upper right), room 35 had #628 (lower left), and room 37 had “special colors” (lower right).

Textile samples (12 x 12 in.) of Quatrefoil by Alexander H. Girard for Herman Miller, 1954, 91/46 and 91/51, Miller House and Garden Collection, IMA Archives, Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis, Indiana. (MHG_IVe_B091_f051_001 (upper left), MHG_IVe_B091_f051_002 (upper right), MHG_IVe_B091_f051_003 (lower left), MHG_IVe_B091_f046_001 (lower right))

Our avatar for “Documenting Modern Living” on Tumblr is a textile sample of Alexander H. Girard’s Quatrefoil design for Herman Miller in 1954. The fabric is plain Fortisan, and the color is identified as #627. Girard selected this fabric for the curtains in a girl’s bedroom (room #34).

Detail of textile sample (5 1/2 x 5 1/2 in.) of Quatrefoil by Alexander H. Girard for Herman Miller, 1954, 91/51, Miller House and Garden Collection, IMA Archives, Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis, Indiana. (MHG_IVe_B091_f051_002)