“The essence of architecture is number, measure and proportion.”

Professor Oswald Mathias Ungers (1926–2007) was a globally renowned German architect and designer. From 1963 onwards he taught in Berlin, then at various universities in the USA, before returning to Germany to teach at the Kunstakademie (Academy of Arts) in Düsseldorf until 1990. Recent projects include the Landesbibliothek (state library) in Karlsruhe, the Messe (exhibition centre) in Frankfurt, the German ambassador’s residence in Washington and – most prestigious of all – the Friedrichstadtpassage (shopping mall) and Messe (trade fair centre) in Berlin; currently, the reconstruction of the Berlin Pergamon Museum is taking place according to his plans and designs.

Professor O.M. Ungers studied at Karlsruhe Technical University under Egon Eiermann from 1947 to 1950. His offices in Cologne, Berlin, Frankfurt am Main and Karlsruhe are continuing his work.

His projects and buildings are distinctive for their strict geometrical designs, with squares as a recurrent motif and cubes frequently forming the basis of the building design.

Awards and appointments (selection):
1971 Member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA)
1987 Grand Prize of the BDA (Association of German Architects)
1987 Member of the Berlin Academy of Science
1988 Honorary member of the BDA
1989 Prix Rhenan/Strasbourg
1992 Member of the Moscow Branch of the International Academy of Architects (IAA)
1997 Great Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
1999 Honorary doctorate from Berlin Technical University
2000 Member of the Academy of the Arts (Berlin)
2000 Grand Prize for Building Culture of the DAI (Confederation of German Architects’ and Engineers’ Associations)
2002 Goethe Medal of the City of Frankfurt am Main
2002 Honorary Member of the Academy of the Arts (Hamburg)
2004 Honorary Doctorate of the University of Bologna (Italy)
2006 Member of the Order of the State of Rhineland-Westphalia
2006 Honorary Member of the Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts