Gehry, Frank O.

Gehry, Frank O.

(1929– ) architect; born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Trained at the University of Southern California and Harvard, he opened his own Los Angeles firm (1962), gaining a reputation as the most inventive architect on the West Coast. Sculptural design, "brutalist" combinations of materials like corrugated metal and chain-link fencing in residential applications, and undefined interiors characterize his work.

Gehry, Frank O.

(1929–)Canadian-born American architect, who has been identified with Deconstructivism. He settled in Santa Monica, CA, where he built several single-family houses from which most traditional forms were eliminated. Examples are the Wosk House, Beverly Hills, CA (1984), and the Gehry House, Santa Monica, CA (1988). In the latter, the rectangular form of the house is distorted, a tilted cube emerges from the façade, and layers of the house are peeled away to reveal the structure. Other works include the California Aerospace Museum, Santa Monica, CA (1984); the University of Minnesota Art Museum (illus.), Minneapolis, MN (1990); the Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, Spain (1977); and the Experience Music Project, Seattle, WA (2000). More recent work includes the steel-clad Performing Arts Center (illus.), Annandale-on-Hudson, NY (2002); the Rasin (Fred and Ginger) Building (illus.), Prague, Czech Republic (2002); the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, CA (2003); and the 76-story undulating facade of 80 Spruce Street in NYC.