October 2020

Loes Schiller, the former Associate Dean of the Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, died unexpectedly on September 22 at the age of 88. She was beloved by over three decades of students for her light-hearted and sometimes irreverent wit, and her principled approach to the affairs of the students and the school. She retired from Columbia GSAPP in 2007.

Loes lived through the Nazi occupation of Holland and the murder by the Gestapo of her father, a member of the Dutch resistance. Her experiences of the war shaped the woman she would become, her intense moral character, support of the underdog, and sense of right. She was born and educated in The Hague, Netherlands, and at age 23 emigrated to the United States and started a new life. She met her husband-to-be in Los Angeles. Together they drove across the country, married and settled in New York City, eventually spending their summers on Fire Island with their two children, Miranda and Eric (‘88 M.Arch). Loes is survived by her husband of 65 years, Marvin, and their two children, as well as by three granddaughters, Sophie, Margot and Genevieve.

A memorial gathering will be held when it is safe to gather again. In lieu of flowers, donations are kindly requested to the Loes Schiller Endowed Scholarship Fund at Columbia GSAPP.