An American Legend

David Rowland studied at the Cranbrook Academy of Art, where Charles and Ray Eames, Florence Knoll, Harry Bertoia, as well as Eero Saarinen attended school. Early in his career, Rowland trained with both Moholy-Nagy and Norman Bel Geddes.

The road to the selling of the first 40/4 was paved with all sorts of stumbling blocks for Designer David Rowland. It seemed as if the design which Rowland went over again and again so thoroughly, until it was finally equal to the chair which is still being manufactured today, would never get past the prototype stage. It was only thanks to the stubbornness of its spiritual father that it finally in 1964 went into production. David Rowland believed in his design and did not tire of handling the design around to manufacturers. Finally, the doggedness paid off. Rowland's hard job was crowned with success: a variation on the American legend, which says you can make it all the way from dishwasher to millionare.

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