In the modern world, Architecture is soaked in cultural influences, history and contributes to enriching the world. It shapes the communities surrounding them, affects the people who use them, and defines the character of their places.
When talking about the massive influence architecture has on the world, one ought to mention Frank Gehry, who altered the landscape of cities across the globe.
Who is Frank Gehry?
Frank Gehry is a world-renowned Master Architect based out of Los Angeles, California. He is well known for his unique style of architecture and for designing whimsical buildings.
He is the pioneer of the deconstructivist movement, which goes against the typical forms of buildings like its name suggests.
To start off, Mr. Gehry designed the Walt Disney Concert Hall, one of the most popular concert halls globally. He also created the Experience Music Project in Seattle. These are just two of his many iconic designs.
To add to his structural prowess Gehry is also known for his use of unusual materials in this structural innovation.
Frank Gehry’s love for curvilinear forms
1. Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles:
The Disney Concert Hall, with its twisted and undulating exterior with views of downtown Los Angeles, is one of Frank Gehry’s most iconic works and has been recognised as one of the finest concert halls in the world. The design can be characterised as powerful and playful.
The Disney concert hall opened in 2003 and is considered an iconic addition to the city. Gehry is regarded as a master of sculptural design, and his ability to create such a unique and beautiful form is commendable. The Disney concert hall offers a stunning visual experience. It is a perfect example of his ability to create thought-provoking and emotionally engaging architecture for all to enjoy.
The building is enormous, featuring a stainless steel exterior and a curved, stainless steel trellis.
As The La Times writes: “Ten years after its debut, it remains the city’s greatest room.”
2. Dancing Building, Prague:
The Dancing Building is significant to architecture because it demonstrates how postmodernist architecture can be fun, creative, and exaggerated. It is the epitome of the postmodernist movement.
The uniqueness of this building lies in the fact that the entire building’s shape resembles that of a human being. It looks like a dance movement of a person.
That said, the building gets its name from the famous dancers: Fred Astair (the rock tower) and Ginger Rogers (the curvilinear glass building).
Gehry elaborated on the idea of making the building in two parts, static and dynamic (“yin and yang”), which were to symbolise the transition of Czechoslovakia (Czechia) from a communist regime to parliamentary democracy.
3. Guggenheim Bilbao, Spain:
Spain is a country that is a melting pot of cultures. It has a distinct history of numerous monuments and beautiful buildings and is a product of diverse cultures.
The Guggenheim Museum Bilbao is an example of a work built to commemorate the history and culture of Spain.
Art museum architects usually follow the mainstream in design. The Guggenheim Museum Bilbao breaks all these rules. You can see that the building has a lot of folds and crinkles in it. It doesn’t fit in with other architectures around it. The museum looks like there is no pattern or structure at all. However, this is one of the reasons why it’s so exceptional.
It was not Frank’s first attempt at a museum, but it was unquestionably his most famous.
What’s common amongst all of Frank’s designs?
Gehry’s style of architecture is recognised by his buildings’ unique shapes, some of which do not resemble anything that has come before it.
Mr. Gehry doesn’t like to be constrained by traditional shapes and functions. Instead, he wants his designs to be expressive. His buildings are inspired by an array of different things, like art and landscape.
Gehry embraces the peculiarity, the eccentricity, individualistic and breaks the norms of traditional architectural designs. And the best part of his designs is that even though his creations are unconventionally curvilinear, but its quite structurally sound.
What can a designer learn from Frank Gehry?
There are myriad things a designer (or rather anyone in any profession) can pick up from Frank Gehry.
He is an example of a designer who constantly experiments with new ideas, continually innovates, and delivers great value in his work. Frank doesn’t let conventional norms define him and his work. Designers can learn a lot from this attitude.
Instead of sticking to a single design process, they can constantly innovate and evolve their designs to produce better results.
Although perfecting existing techniques is always beneficial, one should constantly experiment with new ones to expand their knowledge horizon instead of just that.
Closing Thoughts
Frank Gehry is a man with seemingly no limits.
He manifested eccentricity, playfulness, and creativity in his designs.
Through this piece, we honoured yet another designer/artist that helped change the gears of the field and bestowed the world with exceptional creations.
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