What do you think of when you hear the word canvas? My take—and Herman Miller’s too, it would seem—is of an unadorned surface, plain and receptive, a mirror or repository for artistic inspiration. Herman Miller’s Canvas is thusly named for precisely this reason: “designed to mirror an organization’s culture and raise the level of its performance, Canvas encompasses a simple set of elements to create surround, structure, surface, storage, and support.”

Canvas Office Landscape. Designed by Jeffrey Bernett and Nicholas Dodziuk. Manufactured by Herman Miller.

Reinforce the Ethos of Your Workplace with Herman Miller’s Canvas

The prevailing notion of Canvas derives from the new realities of the office. Easier and more sophisticated modes of communication, virtual storage systems, and enhanced flexibility have created the need for a different kind of infrastructure: “more choice, connection, sustainability, technology, the virtual world, globalization, networks, transparency.”

In other words, gone is the old ball-and-chain, the now antiquated imperative of being tied to the same space, the same desk. The answer proposed by Canvas refers back to their mention of a “kit of parts”: break down the elements of an office landscape into its constituent parts and re-fashion them for aesthetic compatibility and easy change-ability.

The resultant list of available components for Canvas  includes base and stacking frames, privacy panels, modesty panels, stacking windows, team wall storage elements, work surfaces and work surface supports, and a huge variety of storage units.

True to Canvas’ intention to provide “versatile materials that combine to create aesthetic and functional harmony across an entire floorplate,” Herman Miller offers the Canvas components in a wide array of textures and colors: principal and accents finishes in eighteen colors; patterned, solid, and woodgrain laminates; and 11 different veneers and re-cut veneers: “Choose your finish, add dimension with accent colors, and complete the space with glass, laminate, veneer, and textile options.”

About the Manufacturer: Founded in Zeeland, Michigan in 1905 under the name “Star Furniture Company,” manufacturer Herman Miller is synonymous with the rise of Modern design in America and throughout the world. Under the aegis of design director George Nelson, the company has collaborated with such renowned designers as Isamu Noguchi, Robert Propst, and Charles and Ray Eames. Signature Herman Miller products include the Eames Chair, Marshmallow Sofa, and Noguchi Table.