Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe was a pioneering German American architect and interior designer whose minimalist approach shaped modern architecture and furniture design. Known for his pithy aphorisms, such as ‘God is in the details’ and ‘less is more’, Mies played a key role in defining the International Style, a functional and utilitarian architectural style and movement that dominated 1970s Europe. Mies was responsible for creating iconic buildings, including the Villa Tugendhat in Czechia and the Seagram Building in New York, as well as furniture that emphasise simplicity, structure, and function.

Born in 1886, in Aachen, Germany, Mies began his architectural career working in his father’s stone-carving shop and later for renowned architects such as Peter Behrens. His early designs reflected the influence of classicism, but after World War I, Mies shifted towards the rising modernist aesthetic. By the 1920s, he became involved with the Bauhaus, a groundbreaking school of art, design and architecture. He served as its final director before the Nazi regime closed the institution in 1933.

During the interwar period, Mies’s career took off, receiving high-profile, prestigious commissions including designing the German pavilion for the 1929 World’s Fair in Barcelona. In 1937, Mies emigrated to the United States, where he was offered the directorship of the Armour Institute in Chicago (now the Illinois Institute of Technology), shaping a new generation of American architects.

Mies’s work is celebrated for its clean lines, use of industrial materials like steel and glass, and a harmonious integration of space. Some of his most famous buildings include the S. R. Crown Hall, the home of the college of architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, the Bacardi buildings in Mexico City, and the Pavilion and Colonnade Apartments in New Jersey.

His most iconic furniture designs — the ‘Barcelona’ chair, the ‘MR20’ chair and the ‘Brno’ chair — reflect the same ethos that underpins his architecture. Mie was concerned with the use of space to define the forms and structures of his furniture, making them part of the environment for which they were designed.

Throughout his career, Mies consistently adhered to the principles of simplicity and clarity. His vision reshaped modern architecture and design, making him one of the most influential architects and designers of the 20th century.