Dirk Lohan (Alum), Trustee Emeritus, FAIA

Dirk Lohan left his native country of Germany to study architecture at Illinois Institute of Technology under the tutelage of his grandfather, Mies van der Rohe. He returned to Germany and finished his studies in architecture and planning at Technische Hochschule, Diplom-Ingenieur, in Munich. When Lohan returned to Chicago, he worked closely with Mies on projects such as the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin, the IBM office building in Chicago, and the Toronto-Dominion Centre in Toronto.

Lohan is the founder of Lohan Architecture, LLC and is registered to practice architecture in the United States and Germany. Previously, he was senior principal at Lohan Associates and Lohan Anderson, as well as a principal at Wight & Co. Under his leadership, these firms produced an impressive portfolio of design solutions, including such projects as the McDonald’s Headquarters Campus, the Shedd Aquarium, renovation and an addition to Soldier Field Football stadium, as well as many cultural and commercial national and international building projects.

Lohan’s architectural designs have won many awards and have been widely published. He lectures regularly on architecture, art, urbanism and planning, and many of his talks have been published in magazines, both domestically and internationally. Lohan is a fellow of the American Institute of Architects and an extensive supporter of Illinois Tech, serving as a trustee emeritus, former chair of and is now a Mies van der Rohe Society Board Member, and a member of the Board of Advisors at the College of Architecture. He has served on numerous not-for-profit boards, including past president of SOS Children’s Villages USA, past president at Adler Planetarium, the executive committee of the Economic Club of Chicago, and the Chicago Maritime Museum.