Frank

Gehry
Canadian-American architect
 EARLY LIFE
EDUCATION

CONTENT CAREER
FAMOUS BUILDINGS
ARCHITECTURAL STYLE
AWARDS AND HONOUR
 EARLY LIFE
GEHRY WAS BORN FRANK OWEN GOLDBERG ON FEBRUARY 28, 1929, IN TORONTO, ONTARIO, TO
PARENTS SADIE THELMA (NÉE KAPLANSKI/ CAPLAN) AND IRVING GOLDBERG.
A CREATIVE CHILD, HE WAS ENCOURAGED BY HIS GRANDMOTHER, WITH WHOM HE BUILT
LITTLE CITIES OUT OF SCRAPS OF WOOD.
HE SPENT TIME DRAWING WITH HIS FATHER, AND HIS MOTHER INTRODUCED HIM TO THE
WORLD OF ART. "SO THE CREATIVE GENES WERE THERE", GEHRY SAYS.

EDUCATION
IN 1947, GEHRY'S FAMILY
IMMIGRATED TO THE UNITED
STATES, SETTLING IN
CALIFORNIA. HE GOT A JOB
DRIVING A DELIVERY TRUCK
AND STUDIED AT LOS ANGELES
CITY COLLEGE.
GEHRY GRADUATED WITH A
BACHELOR OF ARCHITECTURE
DEGREE FROM THE UNIVERSITY
OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA IN
1954.

IN THE FALL OF 1956, HE MOVED Architecture should speak

HIS FAMILY TO CAMBRIDGE, of its time and place, but
WHERE HE STUDIED CITY yearn for timelessness
PLANNING AT THE HARVARD -FRANK GEHRY
GRADUATE SCHOOL OF DESIGN.
HE LEFT BEFORE COMPLETING
THE PROGRAM, DISHEARTENED
AND "UNDERWHELMED".
CAREER GEHRY RETURNED TO LOS ANGELES TO WORK FOR VICTOR GRUEN
ASSOCIATES, WITH WHOM HE HAD APPRENTICED WHILE AT USC. IN 1957,
AT AGE 28, HE WAS GIVEN THE CHANCE TO DESIGN HIS FIRST PRIVATE
RESIDENCE.
IN 1961, GEHRY MOVED TO PARIS, WHERE HE WORKED FOR ARCHITECT
ANDRE REMONDET. IN 1962, HE ESTABLISHED A PRACTICE IN LOS ANGELES
THAT BECAME FRANK GEHRY AND ASSOCIATES IN 1967, THEN GEHRY
PARTNERS IN 2001.
FROM 1994 TO 1996 A COUPLE BUILDINGS BY GEHRY FOR A PUBLIC
HOUSING PROJECT WERE REALIZED IN GOLDSTEIN, PART OF FRANKFURT-
SCHWANHEIM (1994). IN 1997, GEHRY VAULTED TO A NEW LEVEL OF
INTERNATIONAL ACCLAIM WHEN THE GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM BILBAO
OPENED IN BILBAO, SPAIN. SINCE THEN, GEHRY HAS REGULARLY WON
MAJOR COMMISSIONS AND ESTABLISHED HIMSELF AS ONE OF THE
WORLD'S MOST NOTABLE ARCHITECTS.
WALT DISNEY
CONCERT
HALL
BUILT IN - 1999-2003
LOCATION - 111 SOUTH GRAND
AVENUE, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA,
U.S.
OWNER - LOS ANGELES MUSIC CENTER
SEATING TYPE - RESERVED
CAPACITY - 2265
THE HALL IS A COMPROMISE BETWEEN A
VINEYARD-STYLE SEATING
CONFIGURATION AND A CLASSICAL
SHOEBOX DESIGN.
CONSTRUCTION OF THE UNDERGROUND
PARKING GARAGE BEGAN IN 1992 AND WAS
COMPLETED IN 1996.
CONSTRUCTION OF THE CONCERT HALL
ITSELF STALLED FROM 1994 TO 1996 DUE TO
LACK OF FUNDRAISING. ADDITIONAL
FUNDS WERE REQUIRED SINCE THE
CONSTRUCTION COST OF THE FINAL
PROJECT FAR EXCEEDED THE ORIGINAL
BUDGET. PLANS WERE REVISED, AND IN A
COST-SAVING MOVE THE ORIGINALLY
DESIGNED STONE EXTERIOR WAS
REPLACED WITH A LESS COSTLY STAINLESS
STEEL SKIN.
 DUE TO THE MATHEMATICAL COMPLEXITY OF GEHRY'S INNOVATIVE DESIGN, HE RELIED ON COMPUTER
SOFTWARE TO PRODUCE HIS DESIGN IN A WAY THAT COULD BE COMPLETED BY CONTRACTORS.
PERHAPS IT IS THE ANGLE-BASED DESIGN OF THE CONCERT HALL THAT REQUIRED THE USE OF CATIA
(COMPUTER-AIDED THREE-DIMENSIONAL INTERACTIVE APPLICATION), WHICH CAN BE SEEN ON THE
EXTERIOR OF THE BUILDING.
FOR EXAMPLE, THE BOX COLUMNS ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL ARE TILTED
FORWARD AT SEVENTEEN DEGREES. THE ANGULAR DESIGN WAS USED BY GEHRY TO "SYMBOLIZE MUSICAL
MOVEMENT AND THE MOTION OF LOS ANGELES".
ACOUSTICS
IN ORDER TO PRODUCE BEST ACOUSTICS,
GEHRY USED RATIOS TO TEST THE ACOUSTICS
OF A MODEL OF THE BUILDING, WHICH WAS A
1:10 REPLICA.
GEHRY HAD TO SCALE ALL ELEMENTS OF THE
DESIGN ACCORDINGLY, INCLUDING THE
SOUND THAT HE PUMPED INTO THE MODEL.
GEHRY REDUCED THE WAVELENGTH OF THE
SOUNDS BY A FACTOR OF TEN IN ORDER TO
DISCOVER HOW HIS DESIGN WOULD RESPOND
TO THE ORCHESTRAS THAT WOULD LATER
PERFORM IN IT TO PROVIDE THE BEST
POSSIBLE ACOUSTICS.
THE WALLS AND CEILING OF THE HALL ARE
FINISHED WITH DOUGLAS-FIR WHILE THE
FLOOR IS FINISHED WITH OAK.
 REFLECTION
THE EXTERIOR OF
FOUNDERS ROOM
AFTER PANELS WERE
PROBLEMS
RE-SURFACED ORIGINALLY, FRANK GEHRY HAD DESIGNED THE DISNEY
CONCERT HALL WITH A FACADE OF STONE, BECAUSE "AT
NIGHT STONE WOULD GLOW,"
WHILE MOST OF THE BUILDING'S EXTERIOR WAS DESIGNED
WITH STAINLESS STEEL GIVEN A MATTE FINISH, THE
FOUNDERS ROOM AND CHILDREN'S AMPHITHEATER WERE
DESIGNED WITH HIGHLY POLISHED MIRROR-LIKE PANELS.
THE REFLECTIVE QUALITIES OF THE SURFACE WERE
AMPLIFIED BY THE CONCAVE SECTIONS OF THE FOUNDERS
ROOM WALLS.
DETAIL NEAR ENTRANCE THERE WAS ALSO THE INCREASED RISK OF TRAFFIC
ACCIDENTS DUE TO BLINDING SUNLIGHT REFLECTED FROM
THE POLISHED SURFACES, THUS, IN 2005, THESE WERE
DULLED BY LIGHTLY SANDING THE PANELS TO ELIMINATE
UNWANTED GLARE.
 P
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DETAIL ATOP MAIN ENTRANCE THE AUDITORIUM
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VIEWED AT NIGHT MAIN ENTRANCE AT NIGHT Y
DANCING
HOUSE
DESIGNED IN - 1992
BUILT IN - 1994-1996
FLOORS - 11
LOCATION - PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
LAND AREA - 491M2
BUILT-UP AREA - 5.400 M2
THE DANCING HOUSE IS BUILT IN THE
DECONSTRUCTIVIST STYLE, THAT PUTS AN
EMPHASIS ON INCONGRUITY, BUILDINGS
APPEARED “DECONSTRUCTED”—LOPSIDED,
ASYMMETRICAL, FRAGMENTED.
THE DANCING HOUSE IS DESIGNED
AROUND THE METAPHOR OF A DANCING
COUPLE, WITH TWO CENTRAL PILLARS
REPRESENTING THE DISTINCT POLARITIES
OF STATIC AND DYNAMIC MOVEMENT.
THE MASCULINE PART OF THE DANCING
COUPLE IS REPRESENTED BY THE MORE
SOLID TOWER, SUPPORTED ON THREE
STURDY PILLARS AND WITH AN
IMAGINARY MAT OF HAIR MADE OF STEEL
AND WIRE MESH WHICH SWINGS WITH
THE BREEZE ATOP HIS HEAD.
THE FEMININE HALF IS THE GLASS TOWER
WITH EIGHT COLUMNS AT ITS BASE,
INCLINED TOWARD HER PARTNER WITH A
DRESS OF STEEL AND GLASS.
 EACH OF THE TWO TOWERS IS ESSENTIALLY A DISTORTED CYLINDER.
THE DIAMETER OF THE SOLID DOMINANT MALE TOWER EXPANDS AS IT EXTENDS AS IT TRAVELS SKYWARD,
WHILE ITS GLAZED FEMALE PARTNER IS DRAMATICALLY GIRDLED AT THE WAIST.
BEHIND THE TWISTED FAÇADE THERE ARE RELATIVELY SIMPLE FLOORS, BASED ON A CONVENTIONAL
CONNECTION OF LEASEABLE SPACE, ORGANISED AROUND A CORE OF CIRCULATION IN AN L-SHAPE.
ON THE GROUND FLOOR OF THE BUILDING, BETWEEN THE LARGE CIRCULAR PILLARS, THERE ARE SHOPS, A
HOTEL AND A SMALL CAFETERIA.
FROM THE SECOND TO SEVENTH FLOOR, THE BUILDING IS FILLED WITH OFFICES.
HOWEVER ON THE TOP LEVEL THERE IS A RESTAURANT WITH PANORAMIC VIEWS OF THE CITY.
STRUCTURE
THE GLASS TOWER HAS A CONCRETE
STRUCTURE WITH A CONICAL SHAPE WHICH
IS SUPPORTED ATOP A SERIES OF INCLINED
COLUMNS WHICH RISE FROM GROUND
LEVEL, CREATING A PORTICO AND
CONTINUING TO THE END OF THE BUILDING.
THE TOWER IS CLOSED BY A DOUBLE
CURTAIN WALL: AN INTERIOR ONE OF
RETRACTED GLASS AND THE SECOND AN
EXTERIOR SKIN.
THE BUILDING WHICH FACES THE RIVER
RISES AS A SOLID CYLINDRICAL CONCRETE
VOLUME ON THE CORNER, WHERE IT JOINS
WITH THE STEEL AND GLASS STRUCTURE
FOLLOWED BY A LARGER FAÇADE WHICH
FACES THE RIVER AND IS CONSTRUCTED ON
A BASE OF 99 PREFABRICATED CONCRETE
PANELS AND NUMEROUS WINDOWS.
MATERIALS
THE BUILDINGS, WITH A SURFACE OF 5842M², WERE
CONSTRUCTED IN STEEL, GLASS AND PREFABRICATED
CONCRETE PANELS, FINISHED WITH PLASTER
CHARACTERISTIC OF THE LOCAL ARCHITECTURE.
FOR THE BUILDING PARALLEL TO THE RIVER, THEY USED
CONCRETE PANELS IN 99 DIFFERENT SHAPES AND
DIMENSIONS. AT THE INAUGURATION, A SCULPTURE,
MEDUSA, WAS PLACED ON TOP, MADE OF METAL TUBES AND
COVERED WITH STAINLESS STEEL WIRE MESH.
THE ARCHITECTS, GEHRY AND MILUNIC, DECIDED NOT TO
PAINT THE EXPOSED MATERIALS, BUT TO DISPLAY THEIR
NATURAL COLOURS: THE GLASS IS GREEN, THE CONCRETE
GREY AND THE STEEL STRUCTURE SILVER.
 P
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INTERIORS
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VIEWED AT NIGHT EVENING VIEW Y
 ACCORDING TO GEHRY, THE MISSION OF
AN ARCHITECT IS CLEAR: “TO DESIGN
SOMETHING THAT ONE WOULD WANT TO
BE A PART OF, SOMETHING ONE WOULD
WANT TO VISIT AND ENJOY IN AN ATTEMPT
TO IMPROVE ONE’S QUALITY OF LIFE.”
GEHRY SEES THE WORLD AS A COLLISION
OF THOUGHTS REPRESENTED THROUGH
BUILDINGS, MUSIC, AND ART THAT IS NOT
PROPERLY EXPRESSED THROUGH THE

ARCHITECTURAL SIMPLICITY OF THE NEAT, CLEAN SQUARES

OF MODERNISM.
GEHRY'S ARCHITECTURAL STYLE IS UNIQUE

STYLE AND DIFFICULT TO CATEGORIZE, SO HE HAS

BEEN CONSIDERED POSTMODERNIST, OR
CONTEMPORARY. HOWEVER, HIS STYLE IS
BEST DESCRIBED AS DECONSTRUCTIVIST.
 FRANK GEHRY CONDEMNS THE NORM OF
DESIGNING BUILDINGS IN LINEAR
GEOMETRIC FORMS.
DANCING HOUSE HE BELIEVES THAT A BUILDING SHOULD GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM
BLEND WITH ITS SURROUNDINGS AND
APPEAR AS ITS NATURAL ELEMENT BUT
STILL STAND OUT FROM THE REST.
HE DEPICTS THESE IDEAS BY DESIGNING
FLUID FORMS, USING METALLIC SURFACE
FINISHES, AND BOLD COLOURS.
THE KEY PRINCIPLE OF DECONSTRUCTIVISM
WALT DISNEY CONCERT LOUIS VUITTON FOUNDATION
DEMONSTRATES THAT THE FORM OF A
HALL
BUILDING NEED NOT REPRESENT ITS
FUNCTION.
THEREFORE, UNDULATED, FOLDED, AND
ANGULATED BUILDING FACADES ARE ALL
ELEMENTS OF A DECONSTRUCTED DESIGN.

MUSEUM OF POP CULTURE 8 SPRUCE STREET

 PRITZKER ARCHITECTURE PRIZE

AIA GOLD MEDAL, AMERICAN INSTITUTE

OF ARCHITECTS

AWARDS
PAEZ MEDAL OF ART

PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM

THANK
YOU
PRESENTED BY-
Radhika Agarwal
Ranjana Sah
Rimsha Mohd. Jani