Mies van der Rohe, Ludwig

1886 – He was born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies on the 27th day of March of this year in Aachen.

1908 – He worked in his father's stone-carving shop and at several local design firms before he moved to Berlin joining the office of interior designer Bruno Paul. He began his architectural career as an apprentice at the studio of Peter Behrens from this year until 1912, where he was exposed to the current design theories and to progressive German culture.

1921 - Mies made a dramatic debut with his stunning competition proposal for the faceted all-glass Friedrichstrasse skyscraper in this year, followed by a curved version in 1922.

1929 - He continued with a string of brilliant pioneering projects, finish in his two European masterworks: the temporary German Pavilion for the Barcelona exposition in this year and the elegant Villa Tugendhat in Brno, Czech Republic, accomplished in 1930.

1937 - His style was rejected by the Nazis as not "German" in character. Disappointed and unhappy, he left his homeland unwillingly in this year as he saw his opportunity for any future building commissions vanish, accepting a residential commission in Wyoming and then an offer to head an architectural school in Chicago.

1944 – He became an American citizen, completing his severance from his native Germany. His 30 years as an American architect reflect a more consistent and mature approach towards achieving his goal of a new architecture for the 20th Century.

1946 – Between this year and 1951, he designed and built the Farnsworth House, a weekend retreat outside Chicago for an independent professional woman, Dr. Edith Farnsworth. Here, he explored the relationship between the individual, man-made shelter, and nature.

1958 - Mies van der Rohe designed what has been regarded as the pinnacle of the modern high-rise architecture, the Seagram Building in New York.

1969 – He died on the 17th day of August of this year in Chicago, USA.