Frank Gehry, the maestro who shook the pillars of designing buildings by introducing new techniques to the world of architecture. From iconic Guggenheim Museum Bilbao to the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris, Gehry proved that he has a unique whimsical touch to his craft which is delivered in his finished buildings.
Early life
Frank Gehry was born on February 28, 1929 in Toronto, Ontario to Jewish Parents. His interest in architecture was developed by his grandparents at a very young age. His grandfather owned a hardware store. He used to spend a lot of time making imaginary and futuristic buildings from the leftovers of the hardware shop.Gehry went to the University of Southern California to attain a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture in 1954. Later on went to the Harvard Graduate School of design to study City Planning.
Career
Gehry began his career by working for Victor Gruen Associated and Pereira and Luckman in Los Angeles. He was given a chance to design his first private residence at a mere age of 28. He built “The David Cabin”. This was symbolic for his career later on. The over 2000sq. ft. mountain retreat had unique design features with strong Asian influences like Shosoin Treasure House. Frank went to Paris to work for Andre Remondet but returned back to California after a brief stint. He started his own firm in 1962. There was no stopping by from there. Most of his earlier work was in Southern California which also includes Santa Monica Place and many residential buildings like the eccentric Norton House.
Gehry’s work reflects spirit of experimentation along with a respect for the demands of professional practices which has largely remained un-aligned with stylistic tendencies. He had deep roots in modernism. His work has been sought after to have modernistic strings attached to it.
He has been known as someone who “made us produce buildings that are fun, sculpturally exciting, good experiences”. Gehry work is sometimes labelled as Crude but his consistency has brought him accolade from all over the world. Usually his work is embarked with nontraditional ideas sometimes referred as DEconstructivism.
Frank Gehry’s Work
Frank Gehry’s work speaks for itself. There are so many illustrious building spanning over his long career. Some of them are listed below:
Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, California:
The iconic building of the Walt Disney concert hall was way ahead of its time. It reflects Gehry’ passions for sailing. The structure’s exterior has stainless steel that billow above grand avenues while inside similar shaped panels of Douglas fir makes up the auditorium.
Chiat/Day Complex, Venice, California:
Gehry built day complex in Venice California for advertising company Chiat/Day, commonly known as Binoculars Building. Office structure resembles a ship’s prow and tree trunks flanking the sculpture, spacious enough to hold 500 employees per day.
Gehry House, Santa Monica, California
Gehry’s shot to fame was his own residence designed by himself in 1978. It was modern yet sculptural. It won the American Institute of Architects’ prestigious Twenty-Five Year Award in 2012.
Dancing House, Prague, Czech Republic:
Prague offices of the Dutch insurance company Nationale-Nederlanden, also called Fred and Ginger as it resembles a dancing couple. It is made of metal mesh and glass and concrete cylinder.
Guggenheim Bilbao, Spain:
The Guggenheim’s satellite in Bilbao, Spain; multiplied the museum’s exhibition space in a mountain of stone, glass and titanium that follows the contours of the Nervion river.
Stata Center, Cambridge, Massachusetts
The Ray and Maria Stata Center for Computer, Information and Intelligence Sciences built in 2004. Gehry designed the Stata center specially encouraged its occupants to enjoy mythological attributes of science.
Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, France:
Commission by LVMH chief Bernard Arnault, it was completed in 2014. The hip like exterior has 12 glass sails which covers the concrete-clad gallery spaces.
Other famous master pieces created by Frank Gehry are:
- The Headquarters of IAC, New York
- Gehry Tower, Hanover, Germany
- Museum of Pop Culture, Seattle
- “El Peix”, fish sculpture in Barcelona, Spain
- Hotel Marques de Riscal, Spain
- MARTa Herford, Germany
- BP Pedestrian Bridge, Chicago
- Art Gallery of Ontario, Canada
- Biomuseo, Panama City
- Chau Chak Wing Building, Sydney, Australia
Other Aspects of Frank Gehry
Gehry has been called “the apostle of chain-link fencing and corrugated metal siding”.
Frank Gehry has many sides to him. Apart from being successful architect, he also has tried his luck in other professions of interest. He succeeded in almost all of them. Gehry is a classic artist and had exhibition of his artwork in 1998. He has been a judge and a renowned teacher in his alma mater; the University of Southern California. Apart from designing buildings, Gehry has also designed a line of furniture, jewelry for Tiffany & co, sculptures and many other household items.
His first line of furniture was produced in 1969 with the name of “Easy Edges”. Another line was out for sale in 1992 with the name of “Bentwood Furniture”.
Gehry also designed the official trophy for the world cup of hockey in 2004. He redesigned the trophy in 2016 as well.
Gehry designed his first yacht in 2015.
Gehry is considered responsible for the innovative architectural software which gave an entirely new dimension to architectural designing. His firm established Gehry technologies in year 2002. In 2005, Gehry teamed upwith Digital Project Software to develop GTeam Software. It brought innovations in aerospace and manufacturing of AEC.
Awards and Accolades
Frank Gehry has received accolades from across the world because of his highly embellished career. Some of them are listed below:
- Fellow of American Academy of Arts and Letters
- Pritzker Architecture Prize
- Premium Imperiale
- Dorothy and Lillian Gish prize
- American Academy of Achievement’s Golden Plate Award
- National medal of Arts
- Gold medal award, Royal Architectural Institute of Canada
- Companion of the order of Canada
- Cooper-Hewitt National Design Award Lifetime Achievement
- Neutral medal
- Inductee, Canada’swalk of fame
- Paez Medal of Art, New York city
- Harvard Arts Medal
Frank Gehry is a true Canadian at heart. Though he lives in SantaMonica, California and has his head office in Los Angeles; he has a little Canada deep in his heart. At the age of 91, he is still fierce and active and is a true role model of living life to its fullest.
He is a member of the California yacht club in marina Del Rey. He also serves on the leadership council of the New York stem cell foundation.
Gehry’s known for his use of bold, postmodern shapes and unusual fabrications. A role model for all the newcomers as he is an inspiration for anyone who has little bit knowledge about designing.
