• 10/17/2018

TUM honorary doctorate for architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron

Visionaries who created architecture with charisma

Outstanding achievements in architecture and urban planning as well as in international teaching and research – on Wednesday, Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron, both famous Swiss architects, received an honorary doctorate from the Technical University of Munich (TUM). At the Vorhoelzer Forum at the Department of Architecture, TUM Vice President Prof. Juliane Winkelmann presented them with the certificates.

Pierre de Meuron, TUM Vice President Juliane Winkelmann, and Jacques Herzog (from left to right). (Image: Matthias Kestel / TUM)
Pierre de Meuron, TUM Vice President Juliane Winkelmann, and Jacques Herzog (from left to right). (Image: Matthias Kestel / TUM)

The Allianz Arena in Munich, the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, the National Stadium in Beijing, the conversion of the Tate Gallery in London and many other famous architectural projects were designed by Jacques Herzog, Pierre de Meuron and their team. Dietrich Fink, Professor for Urban Architecture at the TUM, said in his laudation to around 150 invited guests at the Vorhoelzer Forum that the buildings had a special charisma. For decades, the projects of Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron had influenced architects and students.

Herzog and de Meuron have been teaching as professors at ETH Zurich from 1999 until their retirement in summer 2018. Now, they have been awarded the honorary doctorate in engineering by the TUM. The architects both had obtained their diplomas at ETH Zurich. Shortly afterwards, in 1978, they founded the now renowned architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron in Switzerland. The buildings which have been implemented since then have been noticed by a broad audience far beyond architectural experts.

"Pioneers of individuality"

"We honor you as pioneers of individuality, as visionaries with an unmistakable intuition for the themes of the future, and as seducers whose primary interest lies in the richness and complexity of the phenomena of this world," Prof. Fink continued in his laudation. "The Department of Architecture at the Technical University of Munich is pleased and to award you with the honorary doctorate."

Technical University of Munich

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