Frank Gehry, one of the most influential and revolutionary architects of the last century, has died. He was 96.
His death was confirmed by his chief of staff, Meaghan Lloyd. Gehry was celebrated worldwide for his avant-garde, experimental style that challenged conventional design and transformed city skylines. He is survived by his wife, Berta Isabel Aguilera, their two sons, Alejandro and Samuel, and two daughters from his first marriage, Leslie and Brina.
His work was often polarizing but always impossible to ignore. It was art made for living and working in.
An Unconventional Beginning
Born in Toronto, Canada, in 1929, Gehry moved to Los Angeles as a teenager. He pursued architecture at the University of Southern California and later completed studies at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. After starting his own firm, he began to methodically dismantle the established principles of his profession. He rejected symmetry, embracing unconventional geometric shapes and raw, unfinished materials in a style that would become known as deconstructivism.
His first major breakthrough was a personal one. Gehry redesigned his own home in Santa Monica, California, using a surprising mix of materials like corrugated steel, plywood, and chain-link fencing. This project served as a mission statement, signaling a radical departure from the norm and setting the stage for a career built on pushing boundaries.
The Bilbao Effect and Global Stardom
While respected in architectural circles for decades, Frank Gehry was catapulted to global fame in 1997 with the completion of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain. The structure, a swirling masterpiece of titanium, limestone, and glass, was instantly hailed as a modern marvel. Architect Philip Johnson, a contemporary, called it “the greatest building of our time.”
The museum did more than just house art; it revitalized an entire city. The phenomenon of a single, daring cultural investment boosting tourism and transforming a local economy became known as the “Bilbao effect.” Cities around the world scrambled to replicate its success. His work was so significant that in 1989, years before the Guggenheim, Gehry was awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize, his industry’s highest honor. The jury praised his work for its “highly refined, sophisticated and adventurous aesthetic.”
“His designs, if compared to American music, could best be likened to Jazz, replete with improvisation and a lively unpredictable spirit,” the Pritzker panel stated at the time.
A Portfolio of Sculptural Icons
The success in Bilbao put Gehry in high demand. He went on to design some of the world’s most recognizable structures, each with its own unique and unpredictable character. No two Gehry buildings ever looked the same. He used advanced 3D modeling software, similar to that used by aerospace engineers, to bring his complex, windy visions to life—a practice most architects avoided due to its immense cost and difficulty.
His impressive body of work includes:
- The Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, with its metallic sails billowing in the wind.
- The Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago’s Millennium Park.
- The Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris, a collection of glass “sails” floating above a park.
- Prague’s “Dancing House,” which appears like a glass building folding into itself.
- The Gehry Tower in Hanover, Germany.
Embracing Critics and Pop Culture
Gehry’s daring designs often drew sharp criticism. The Walt Disney Concert Hall was initially described by some as a “fortune cookie gone berserk” and a “pile of broken crockery.” Gehry, however, remained unfazed. In a 2007 interview, he quipped about the negative reviews, “At least they’re looking!”
His fame even reached mainstream pop culture with a guest appearance on a 2005 episode of *The Simpsons*. Voicing himself, the cartoon Gehry is inspired to design a concert hall for Springfield after crumpling up a letter. The joke later “haunted” him, as he told an interviewer that people genuinely believed his complex designs came from wadded paper rather than sophisticated computations.
A Lasting Legacy
Tributes are pouring in, celebrating Gehry’s relentless creativity and his courage to discard convention. Paul Goldberger, who authored a biography on Gehry, said the architect wanted to work “until the day he died.”
“He was one of the very few architects of our time to engage people emotionally,” Goldberger told BBC Radio 4. “He was all about pushing the envelope… wanting to use the most advanced technology to do the most adventurous things.”
The Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao posted a video tribute, writing, “We will be forever grateful… his spirit and legacy will always remain connected to Bilbao.” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also extended his condolences, noting, “His unmistakable vision lives on in iconic buildings around the world.” That vision, crafted from metal, glass, and a boundless imagination, has permanently altered our world.