Frank Gehry, one of the most influential architects of the last century, has died aged 96. Gehry was acclaimed for his avant-garde, experimental style of architecture. His titanium-covered design of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, catapulted him to fame in 1997.
His breakthrough in the architectural world came years earlier when he redesigned his own home in Santa Monica, California, using materials like chain-link fencing, plywood, and corrugated steel.
His death was confirmed by his chief of staff Meaghan Lloyd. He is survived by two daughters from his first marriage, Leslie and Brina, as well as his wife, Berta Isabel Aguilera, and their two sons, Alejandro and Samuel.
Born in Toronto in 1929, Gehry moved to Los Angeles as a teenager to study architecture at the University of Southern California, before completing further study at the Harvard Graduate School of Design in 1956 and 1957.
After starting his own firm, he broke from traditional architectural principles of symmetry, using unconventional geometric shapes and unfinished materials in a style now known as deconstructivism. Through blending unexpected materials and sheathing buildings in stainless steel to create curvy exteriors, Gehry created buildings that took on arresting sculptural shapes.
Gehry's international breakthrough with the Guggenheim transformed the city of Bilbao, boosting tourism to the city and the local economy. The cultural phenomenon was later parodied in a 2005 episode of The Simpsons, where Gehry himself appeared.
His work in Bilbao put him in high demand, and he went on to create iconic structures such as the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago, the Gehry Tower in Germany, and the Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris. Celebrated for pushing boundaries, Gehry's designs remain a testament to modern architecture's innovative spirit. His unmistakable vision lives on in iconic buildings around the world.
His breakthrough in the architectural world came years earlier when he redesigned his own home in Santa Monica, California, using materials like chain-link fencing, plywood, and corrugated steel.
His death was confirmed by his chief of staff Meaghan Lloyd. He is survived by two daughters from his first marriage, Leslie and Brina, as well as his wife, Berta Isabel Aguilera, and their two sons, Alejandro and Samuel.
Born in Toronto in 1929, Gehry moved to Los Angeles as a teenager to study architecture at the University of Southern California, before completing further study at the Harvard Graduate School of Design in 1956 and 1957.
After starting his own firm, he broke from traditional architectural principles of symmetry, using unconventional geometric shapes and unfinished materials in a style now known as deconstructivism. Through blending unexpected materials and sheathing buildings in stainless steel to create curvy exteriors, Gehry created buildings that took on arresting sculptural shapes.
Gehry's international breakthrough with the Guggenheim transformed the city of Bilbao, boosting tourism to the city and the local economy. The cultural phenomenon was later parodied in a 2005 episode of The Simpsons, where Gehry himself appeared.
His work in Bilbao put him in high demand, and he went on to create iconic structures such as the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago, the Gehry Tower in Germany, and the Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris. Celebrated for pushing boundaries, Gehry's designs remain a testament to modern architecture's innovative spirit. His unmistakable vision lives on in iconic buildings around the world.
