Frank Gehry
- Category : Building-Trades-Architect-Planner
- Type : MGE
- Profile : 4/6 - Opportunistic / Role Model
- Definition : Split - Small (6,22,49,51)
- Incarnation Cross : RAX Planning 1
Categories
- Birth Year: 1929
- Birthday: 28. February
- Birthplace: Toronto, Canada
- Category: Building-Trades-Architect-Planner
- Profile: 4-6
- Type: Emotional Manifesting Generator
- Inc.Cross: Planning 1
- Definition: Double Split - Small (6,22,49,51)
- Variables: BLR-MRL
- 2343 Structuring
- 3740 Community
- 1034 Exploration
- 2034 Charisma
- 0952 Concentration
- 1020 Awakening
Biography
Canadian-American architect perhaps most famous for designing the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain in 1997 and the Walt Disney Concert Hall, home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, which opened in late October, 2003. In late 2003, he initiated a new business, Gehry Technologies, capitalizing on his architecture company's 13 years of experience with CATIA, a design software that brings his complex drawings to life and enables contractors to measure precisely the needed materials. His work is best known for its abstract, modernist designs that are completely functional.
Growing up during the Depression in Canada, Gehry experimented with design even as a child, building imaginary cities with spare parts. When he was 17, his father moved the family to Los Angeles, hoping for a better life. His first job there was installing pre-fabricated breakfast nooks in houses while he attended the University of Southern California at night where he studied fine arts. He switched to architecture after watching Raphael Soriano, a flamboyant California architect, working at a construction site. Graduating in 1954 with a degree in architecture, he began designing small office buildings, shopping centers, and other commercial structures. In 1987, Lillian B. Disney donated $50 million for a new home for the Los Angeles Philharmonic; Gehry was selected for the project in December 1988. An earthquake in 1994 necessitated a re-design to conform to new building-code standards. When the Guggenheim museum opened in 1997, completed on time and within its $100 million budget, the Los Angeles project seemed stalled. Gehry quit but the civic leaders renewed their commitment to Gehry's project and in 2003, the project is considered a masterpiece, well-worth the $274 million cost and the length of time from start to finish. Gehry has been married twice; he has two daughters with his first wife, Anita, and two sons with his second wife, Berta. Berta serves as the Gehry firm's chief financial officer.