The biography of Meinhard von Gerkan describes an impressive German post-war career, from a refugee orphan to an international star architect. Together with his partner Volkwin Marg, with whom he founded the architecture firm gmp in Hamburg in 1965, Meinhard von Gerkan is among the internationally most successful and sought-after contemporary German architects. His comprehensive architectural work ranges from airports and train stations, commercial and office buildings to congress centers, opera houses, museums, churches, and villas. This volume is a journey of discovery through a rich architectural life shaped by people, places, and buildings, whose protagonist has met new challenges successfully throughout his life, which is one of the reasons why he is one of the great architects of our time.