Johann and his siblings attended school in Flintsbach. He followed his older brothers to Prague, where there were many opportunities tin the building trades. In 1658 his sister Anna married Wolfgang Leuthner, presumably a relative of Prague architect and builder Abraham Leuthner. The brothers later came to work in Leuthner's construction company, where Johann learned the trade of bricklaying. He was married in Prague in 1685.[2]
In 1692 his brother Leonhard moved to Bamberg, where in 1695 he became a court architect for the Schönborns of Bamberg and invited Johann to move there. Johann found work as a foreman overseeing construction on the Michaelsberg. In 1699 he passed the master mason's examination. That autumn, the Elector of Bamberg, Lothar Franz von Schönborn, sent Johann Dientzenhofer to Rome to improve his skills in architecture. Upon his return, in September 1700, Johann was appointed by Prince-Abbot Adalbert I von Schleifras of Fulda (1650-1714) as court architect in Fulda, the capital of the Electorate of Hesse, on the recommendation of Lothar Franz von Schönborn.[2]
Johann's first great church was the Abbey Church at Fulda (1704–12) in Italian baroque style.[3] In 1707 he completed the design for the church at Banz Abbey, which was started by his late brother Leonard. Lothar Franz von Schönborn offered Johann Leonard's former position as court architect at Bamberg. Johann and his family moved permanently from Fulda to Bamberg in 1708.
From 1715-1718, Johann oversees the construction of a hospital in Kronach along with the hospital church of St. Anne. Between 1720 and 1723, Johann serves as building inspector for the construction of the princely bishop's residence in Würzburg, for the Prince-Bishop of Würzburg, Johann Philipp Franz von Schönborn, nephew of Lothar Franz von Schönborn.