Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (1886-1969)

Commonly referred to as Mies, and regarded as one of the pioneers of modern architecture. In the 1930s, Mies was the last director of the Bauhaus. After the rise of the Nazi regime with its strong opposition to modernism, Mies emigrated to the United States. He accepted the position to head the architecture school at what is today the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT). His buildings made use of modern materials such as industrial steel and plate glass to define interior spaces and are very visually identifiable. He is often associated with his fondness for the aphorisms “less is more” and “God is in the details”.