Lotz, born in Heilbronn, initially studied Law at Freiburg (im Breisgau) and art history at Munich. He received his Ph. D. in 1937 under Ludwig Heydenreich in Hamburg, writing his dissertation on Jacopo Vignola's architecture. From then until 1942 he worked at the Kunsthistorisches Institut in Florence. In 1941 he married Hilde Bauer (1907-1999), art historian and distinguished photographer. In 1942 Lotz returned to Germany for military service in World War II. In 1945 he was assigned to the International Commission for Monuments in Munich. With the conclusion of the war, Lotz became deputy director at the Zentralinstitut für Kunstgeschichte in Munich directed by Heydenreich. Since 1952 he was Professor of art at Vassar replacing Richard Krautheimer and following him in 1959 at the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University. In 1962 Lotz became director of the Bibliotheca Hertziana, Max Planck Institute, in Rome. He held the positon until his retirement in 1980. From 1973 until his unexpected death in October 1981 Lotz was the President of the Centro Internazionale di Studi di Architettura Andrea Palladio in Vicenza. He is buried in the Protestant Cemetery in Rome. (information mainly based on the article in the Dictionary of Art Historians)
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