Kerez was born 27 May 1962 in Maracaibo, Venezuela, one of two children, to Christoph Kerez (1927-2019) and Gisela (née Bromberg). His father was the president of the Swiss gemstone industry association.[2][3][4] He is distantly related to James Kerez-Paravicini, who aided founding the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company. Until 1991 he completed his studies in architecture at ETH Zurich.
Christian Kerez studied architecture at ETH Zurich until 1991 and then worked with Rudolf Fontana in Domat/Ems. Kerez started out with architectural photography and founded his architecture office in Zurich in 1993. Christian Kerez has been working at the ETH since 2001, first as a visiting professor, from 2003 as an assistant professor and since 2009 as a professor; he invited Raphael Zuber, Hermann Czech, Arno Brandlhuber, Bijoy Jain, Anne Holtrop, Go Hasegawa, Smiljan Radic and Junya Ishigami.[5] Between 2012 and 2013 he held the Kenzo Tange Chair at Harvard University Graduate School of Design in Cambridge.[6] At the 15th International Architecture Exhibition at the Venice Biennale Kerez designed the Swiss Pavilion.[7]
2014: recognition - Daylight-Award for school building Leutschenbach Zurich
2015: Holcim Awards Europe 2014, Honorable Mention to energy-efficient office building in Holderbank, Switzerland
Gerold Wiederin, Helmut Federle: Nachtwallfahrtskapelle Locherboden. Publ. by Kunsthaus Bregenz with Edelbert Köb, text by Johannes Gachnang, photo-essay by Christian Kerez, Verlag Gerd Hatje, Stuttgart 1997, ISBN3-7757-0736-0
Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein, Morger Degelo Kerez Architects, texts by Hans Frei, Friedemann Malsch, Norbert Jansen, photo-essay by Thomas Flechtner. Lars Müller Publishers, Baden 2000, ISBN978-3-907078-25-9
Valerio Olgiati, Das Gelbe Haus, Kunsthaus Bregenz, archiv kunst architektur, Werkdokumente 19, 2000, Hatje Cantz Verlag, ISBN 3-7757-1004-3, 82 pages
Les échelles de la réalité. L’architecture de Christian Kerez. Exhibition catalogue. Texts by Martin Steinmann and Christian Kerez, EPFL, Lausanne 2006
Conflicts Politics Construction Privacy Obsession. Materials on the Work of Christian Kerez. Texts by Hubertus Adam, Marcel Andino, Hans Frei, Tibor Joanelly. Moritz Küng (ed.) and deSingel international arts campus, Antwerp and Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern 2008, ISBN978-3-7757-2280-3
El Croquis 145: Christian Kerez 2000-2009. Fundamentos arquitectonicos, basics on architecture. Texts by Georg Frank, Hans Frei and Christian Kerez, El Croquis, Madrid 2009, ISBN978-84-88386-54-0
Christian Kerez: Uncertain Certainty, Publ.: Toto, Tokyo 2013, ISBN978-4-88706-334-1