Günter Behnisch


Günter Behnisch was a German architect, born in Lockwitz, near Dresden. During the Second World War he became one of Germany's youngest submarine commanders. Subsequently, Behnisch became one of the most prominent architects representing deconstructivism. His prominent projects included the Olympic Park in Munich and the new West German parliament in Bonn.

Early life

Behnisch was born the second of three children, in Lockwitz near Dresden. He attended a number of schools, due to the fact his Social Democrat father was arrested, sacked and redeployed to Chemnitz by the new Nazi government.
In 1939, Behnisch volunteered to join the navy, aged 17, which was a less onerous alternative to compulsory labour service, or army conscription. He eventually became a U-boat officer and served aboard. In October 1944, he became one of the youngest U-boat commanders,when he commissioned. At the end of the Second World War he surrendered his submarine to the British and became a prisoner of war in Featherstone Castle in Northumberland.
Behnisch initially trained as a bricklayer then, in 1947 enrolled to study architecture at the Technical University in Stuttgart. From 1967 to 1987 he was a professor for architectural/building design and industrial building technology at the Technische Hochschule Darmstadt.

Architectural career

One of his most notable buildings was the new parliament in the West German capital, Bonn. Although he won the architectural design competition in 1973, the construction only began in 1987, and was completed in 1992.
He established his own architecture practice in Stuttgart in 1952, which in 1966 became Behnisch & Partner.
His son Stefan Behnisch established a separate firm, Behnisch Architekten in 1989.

Completed projects