Dirk Lohan, FAIA
Principal
Dirk Lohan left his native Germany to begin his architectural studies at the Illinois Institute of Technology under the tutelage of his grandfather Mies van der Rohe. Dirk Lohan returned to Germany and finished his studies at the Technische Universität (Dipl. Ing.) in Munich in 1962. In the same year he immigrated to the United States and worked closely with Mies on such projects as the New National Gallery in Berlin, the IBM office building in Chicago, and Toronto Dominion Centre.
Dirk Lohan is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects and is registered to practice architecture in the United States and in Germany. Prior to the establishment of Lohan Architecture LLC, Mr. Lohan was the senior principal in his prior firms 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 Oceanarium, the new Soldier Field Football stadium, as well as many cultural and commercial national and international building projects.
Mr. Lohan has established Lohan Architecture with his philosophy that successful architecture must respond not only to economic restrains but also the larger social and physical conditions. During the past 50 years, Dirk Lohan has practiced and promoted the tenets of this philosophy. Looking to the future, Mr. Lohan’s convictions are even more relevant today due to the rapid changes in technology, the growing importance of environmental concerns, and the impact of globalization on the life and work of all people.
Dirk Lohan’s architectural designs have won many awards and have been published widely. He lectures regularly on architecture, art, urbanism, and planning, and many of his talks have been published in magazines domestically and internationally.
As a concerned individual interested in the betterment of life and culture for all people, Dirk Lohan has served on numerous not-for-profit boards, including the Great Books Foundation, the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, and the Board of Trustees of the Illinois Institute of Technology. For many years, he has been dedicated to helping children in the United States and around the world as Board Member and President of the SOS Children’s Villages, Illinois and USA.