In 1938, Hans Knoll moved to New York City from Germany to start his own furniture manufacturing company. In 1941 Hans Knoll Furniture Company began production on their first line of furniture pieces designed by Knoll and Jens Risom. In 1943, Florence Schust, an architect who had worked alongside and studied under Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Eliel Saarinen, approached Knoll with the idea of moving more towards interior design and working with architects. Schust and Knoll married in 1946 and continued to work alongside each other, later renaming the company to Knoll Associates. They built up their design practice on the belief of modern design with a focus on the philosophy of Bauhaus: “that modern furniture should complement architectural space, not compete with it.” After the death of Hans Knoll in 1955, Florence became president of the company however resigned ten years later. For over 75 years and counting, Knoll has worked to preserve the history of modern design, becoming a pioneer in workplace and residential design. Source: Knoll.com