Each year, Herman Miller releases a limited-edition piece, inspired by our design heritage under the Herman Miller Select range. Each release is unique and produced in small quantities. It may be a product we have brought back from the archives, a classic that has been re-interpreted or a newly designed objet d’art.

In 2011, Herman Miller Select presents the George Nelson tray table, which combines George Nelson’s trim 1961 tray table with a walnut and santos palisander inlay inspired by his 1955 Flock of Butterflies clock. This edition is updated in white ash and finished with a process that arrests the wood in it natural, freshly cut state resulting in a creamy white colour. Five-ply veneer construction, with inner plies of bay poplar, ensures the top remains stable through changes in humidity and years of use. A brushed stainless steel column and black umber steel legs support the tray top. The top is also available as a tray only. As with the original, the 2011 Select edition is presented in a special take-home container about the size of a pizza box.

George Nelson was always ahead of time—his and ours. From the practicality of Storagewall to the whimsy of a marshmallow sofa and coconut chair, Nelson was always looking ahead. The versatile and streamlined tray table, which looked nothing like the “occasional tables” present in most mid-century American homes, was another step he took in leading the way into modern design.

Herman Miller
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