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These 21 Buildings By Architect Frank Gehry Actually Exist And They Look Like They Are From A Sci-Fi Movie
In the world of architecture, there has been a strong storm coming from Canada and USA since the early 1960s. It was a powerful cultural force, that pushed through established, conventional norms of architecture like a tornado, but a tornado which not only destroyed the old and boring but also created and invented. This tornado goes by the name of Frank Gehry. Born in 1929, Gehry eventually moved to the USA, where he started his business. Surprisingly, it was a furniture line, but that was just the first step. After having saved enough money, he began by transforming his own home, thus creating a name for himself. What followed were the gradual steps of becoming a living icon of architecture, that has remodeled many urban landscapes and even created an economic phenomenon. We have combined 10 of his most famous buildings that defined an era of building design.
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Fred And Ginger, Prague, Czech Republic
There are good dancers and bad dancers. And it’s not people that we’re talking about this time, but buildings. The Fren And Ginger or The Dancing House in the Chech Capital is one of the most controversial works of Gehry, because of the audacity that he had when he thought of and implemented the idea of building two modern, dancing buildings that don’t fit in with their classical surroundings. Yet unusual shapes have enriched Prague’s old town and now it's iconic. Oh, and the name ‘Fred and Ginger’ was chosen because of the dancers Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers that inspired Frank Gehry.
Sorry, but it's not "Chech" but Czech :) A lots of people was against this building but nowadays almost all of them are in love with this Dancing House.
I'm so sorry about not really liking it. Couldn't help but feel like he was almost forced to trying too much, from some opportunistic infection which was so much "in" these days. I've seen it only few times, but I really don't like it. From the inside, the feeling stays on the same fashion level.
Load More Replies...But Frank Gehry is not the only author of the Dancing House. The first idea originated from Vlado Milunic and the house was then built by both architects.
The building itself is amazing...but it doesn't really fit in the surroundings.
Czech Capital, not Chech Capital. Its Czech republic, not Chech republic. Go back to school
At least it wasn't "Check Republic"... I see that too often.
Load More Replies...You just had to go with rudeness, right? @Barbora above was also stating the obvious, but she's done it with dignity and classy behavior. You should try out sometimes, I mean not to be rude.
Load More Replies...Cool couple, one has a bad hair cut and the other has their corset way to tight.
FAKE, looks like the building is photoshoping its waist to looks slimmer....
I live in Prague and this is definitely not photoshopped. Just check the Google Street View to make sure: https://bit.ly/2Wfln2J
Load More Replies...Interesting concept in the naming of it. But that's another big NO!! from me.
Museum Of Pop Culture, Seattle, Washington
This massive construction looks like it’s melting under Seattle’s mellow sun, yet it’s far from that. This sheet-metal covered structure was inspired by the rock music and the energy that it embodies. Gehry even admitted that the preparations included buying and putting together guitar pieces in order to create a form which would inspire the soon-to-be the museum of pop culture.
Marqués De Riscal Hotel, Elciego, Spain
A small Spanish Town in a region that is famous for its wine today is probably even better known for something way more extravagant. It's yet another boundary-breaking Gehry's work and it's a luxury hotel that looks like something that would make Dox Quixote forget about windmills and start preparing for a much bigger battle.
Stata Center, Cambridge, Massachusetts
The full name of this building is "The Ray and Maria Stata Center for Computer, Information and Intelligence Sciences" and it's was designed for none other than the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It was built in the place of Building 20, a place which was surrounded by legends and local M.I.T. folklore. Since 2004 the Stata Center has attracted so much attention that it's become a legend of its own.
Lou Ruvo Center, Las Vegas, Nevada
This work is not a museum, nor a concert hall, in fact, it's something quite to the contrary. It's a center for brain health, or as the full name goes The Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health. Lou Ruvo is a businessman from Las Vegas, who lost his father due to complications of Alzheimer's disease. Therefore he initiated the project and in 2010 it became reality.
It looks like a tablecloth in a whirlwind. This makes my brain feel unhealthy. Did they spend as much on the medical staffing and equipment as they did on the plans and materials.
Walt Disney Concert Hall In Los Angeles, California
It took over 15 years from the start of the Walt Disney Concert Hall project to its completion. When it was finished back in 2003, the final project cost was estimated to be $274 million. Yet critics and locals agree - it was worth the wait and the money. A monument of modern architecture created what has become an essential part of the city. And if you’re wondering what the inspiration behind something grand like this, it’s the wind. Gehry’s a passionate sailor, therefore the building looks as if it is in motion.
Vitra Design Museum, Weil Am Rhein, Germany
Despite having completed many cutting-edge projects all over the world, this one was the first in Europe. It's a museum that exhibits furniture and interior design pieces and solutions, yet it's the building itself that attracts the most attention. It's special in more ways than one - it was the first time Gehry said yes to curved forms in his project. The result speaks for itself.
Guggenheim Bilbao, Bilbao, Spain
Even though It looks like something where Ice King from Adventure Time would live in if he had a house in Spain, Guggenheim Bilbao serves a big purpose - it’s a museum of modern and contemporary art which in itself is a piece of art. Named as one of the most important works of architecture in the last decades by numerous experts, this building has many reasons why it’s unique. This construction was so successful and well acclaimed that it started attracting tourists to the city of Bilbao. Lots of tourists. During the first 12 months since the museum opened, tourists generated $160 million for the local economy. This building basically revived an entire city. This economical phenomenon even received a name - the Bilbao Effect.
Biomuseo, Panama City, Panama
Biomuseo, an ecology museum, was yet another step for Gehry, as this was his first project in Latin America. Panamanian politicians started talks with Gehry about realizing his works in this location in hopes that this would eventually create a "Bilbao Effect" and attract more tourists and investments. The bright colors, which is not a typical characteristic of Gehry's work, were chosen to represent the rich nature of Panama.
Dr. Chau Chak Wing Building, Sydney, Australia
In 2015, Gehry's influence reached the seventh continent when he finished his first project in Australia. It's a business school building of the University of Technology Sydney and it's estimated that in order to create an unusual brick building like this one, they had to use around 320,000 custom-made bricks.
Art Gallery Of Ontario, Toronto, Canada
2008 was a special year for Frank Gehry, because finally, at the age of 79, he finished his first work in Canada, Toronto, the city where he was born. Before Gehry was commissioned to expand the previous building of the Art Gallery of Ontario, the building had already gone through six expansions that were implemented beginning in the 1920
Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, France
Fondation Louis Vuitton is a museum and a cultural center that rests in Paris, surrounded by the Bois de Boulogne park. It took 3,600 glass panels and 19,000 concrete panels to form this armada-looking structure. It opened in 2014 and is the most famous addition to the Parisian art world in the XXI century, where pieces by artists like Andy Warhol or Roy Lichtenstein are exhibited.
The Fish, Barcelona, Spain
Yes, it's what it looks like - a colossal abstract fish. This eye-catching sculpture was presented to the world back in 1992, during the preparations for the Olympics that took place in Barcelona later the same year. It’s made of metal plates so the humongous fish reflects sunlight and therefore changes its colors and looks even more vivid in real life.
Marta Herford, Herford, Germany
Martha Herford was a textile factory, but with a touch by Frank Gehry, it was transformed into a contemporary art museum. An art museum that looks like it was built out of clay. On Mars. By aliens.
Weisman Art Museum In Minneapolis, Minnesota
An abstract piece of art. Yet we’re not talking about Jackson Pollock’s canvases, but about an entire building. This eye-catching construction is part of University of Minnesota’s campus and its significance is measured not only by its looks but by the fact that it was built before using computers became an unquestionable tool in the field of architecture.
The Iac Building, New York
This one is different. No sparkly and shiny sheet-metal in sight, which automatically made The Iac Building stand out from other creation by Frank Gehry. That’s why it’s said that above its resemblance to the sails of a ship, it’s conceptually closest to an iceberg. And indeed it looks like one, resting in the ocean that is New York.
Binoculars Building, Venice, Los Angeles, California
Originally known as the Chiat/Day building, it didn't take long until people started referring to it as the Binoculars building. And it's not difficult to see why. The whole building is more than the giant binoculars, which, actually, are an original artwork by Claes Oldenburg and serve as an addition to the building itself.
Peter B. Lewis Building, Cleveland, Ohio
Named after a famous philanthropist and the CEO of an insurance company, this building serves as the classrooms for the Weatherhead School of Management’s students. Imagine having classes in a building that looks like it's straight out of a Picasso painting.
Frank Gehry’s Residence In Santa Monica, California
Postmodern, avant-garde, unconventional, striking, eclectic, chaotic. These and many other adjectives followed Gehry after he established himself as an architect. But the very start was his own house, which, he altered to attract attention not only from passers-by but from future clients and critics as well.
Richard B. Fisher Center, Annandale-On-Hudson, New York
Since it was opened back in 2003, it received a lot of positive attention. “The best small concert hall in the United States” is how it was once described. Even though seeing it through a picture can be deceiving and it might look relatively small, it actually consists of two theaters and several rehearsing studios. Also, the building is in harmony with nature, as Gehry chose the green approach while designing the piece, aiming to reduce the need for fossil fuels.
The Cinémathèque Française, Paris, France
If movies, as an art form, had an address, it would be 21 Rue de Bercy, Paris. It's here, where one of the world's largest collection of movie-related objects is based. And of course, it was designed by Frank Gehry.
Usually for me the farther out the better but these just look like a wadded up jumble to me. Novel but I wouldn't want to have to look at them every day.
He's probably snickering to himself and thinking he got the better of all these people and really designed these structures after crumpled up shapes of paper he dug out of the garbage.
Load More Replies...Yeah, I wouldn't want to look at them every day, but it's cool to see them as photographs.
Load More Replies...Personally I prefer the "golden rectangle" or golden ration as in Frank Lloyd Wright.
I absolutely loved this! The comments on these are absolutely hilarious pml
Gehry and Rem Koolhaas are my favorite architects. I'm sad that Gehry's idea for the Guggenheim on the East River in New York City never came to fruition.
They are amazing and unique works of art that add variety and whimsy to a world that can be so cold and callous. It's wonderful to see someone bringing a little magic and wonder to a planet that seems to be consumed by more and more hate every day. Thank you for sharing and Thank you Mr. Gehry for sharing your talents with the rest of the human race.
I watched them build "New York by Gerhy" @ 8 Spruce St, in lower Manhattan. It was too close to Ground Zero to make a building that conveyed images of twisted metal. Especially during the construction phase.
For all you people cringing at this, these are works of art except on a bigger scale, and if you didn't like this, why did you look at it.
They ALL hurt my eyes. I occasionally drive by his Las Vegas monstrosity and cringe every time. Garbage.
I thought the same thing about the EMP building in Seattle when it first went up. But after experiencing it from the inside..it's actually quite remarkable how these are designed.
Load More Replies...If all of the buildings are in my neighbourhood, I would think of it as a mental hospital village
I personally thought that some of these were super cool. Ex: The Panama one was super cool. But there were others like the Guggenheim one was not so whimsical. These are my opinions and I respect all of your opinions please respect mine.
In the old times they had less and made stunning buildings. Today they have more and cant even buy creativity ....
These are...interesting. I'm not sure I'd want to live in something like this, but it appears most of them are museums of some sort anyway. And, as much as I usually don't like 'modern art/modern architecture' these are kind of cool. They're different, unusual and I suppose fit in with the flow of these crazy times we live in. Would also love to see the inside, is it normal(bar windows/some angled walls) or equally crazy?
I want to see what these things look like inside. How much usable space is there?
I'd be interested to see how the interior exists inside those shells. Is there a lot of non-usable space as a result of the exterior shapes? Generally the outside of a building is reflection of the interior space, and that's honestly how it ought to be. If he's inverted that, then the interior still needs not to be squandered by useless external extravagance.
I despise every one of these designs with the fire of a thousand suns. They look like enormous piles of street litter or junk. This man is the definition of pretension run rampant. There is no grace or beauty to any of these and I bet most lack functionality as well. The Biomuseo in Panama looks like a cluster of the proverbial "shanty town down by the river." This man is the world's worst living architect who defiles every landscape he touches, inflicting these monstrosities on the public is epic visual/spatial douchebaggery. Why can the people funding this garbage just stop...proof positive that money can buy neither taste nor in the case of Gehry's behavior class.
Obviously you don' t understand the concept of art.......I understand people have personal taste but to speak so poorly of an artist (who has won 22 awards by the way) and insulting his behavior, personality and motives is absolutely disgusting. He does not inflict his 'visual douchbaggery' on the landscape, other people commission him to design buildings like this, and they pass many different approval processes before they are built. Obviously you wouldn't know that because you can't comprehend how anybody could have a different opinion to you, let alone the thousands who appreciate his art. If you don't like it, just move on and don't try and raise yourself by putting down others. Sad.
Load More Replies...These all look like they were designed by Salvador Dali (The guy who painted the melting clocks)
Düsseldorf, in Germany, also hosts the Gehry buildings on the city harbor. i was there last autumn, for work - there's a great restaurant on the ground floor of one of the buildings, i got there at night and thought i was hallucinating, then figured it out ;)
It's not my money so I really don't care, but I've always thought that Gehry just rolls a galvanized garbage can down a cliff and goes from there. If he's not laughing his a*s off all the way to the bank, I'd be surprised.
God I hate Frank Gehry's work so much. The Simpsons did it best when, if I remember right, Springfield hires Gehry to design a new school and he is inspired by a crumpled up piece of paper. Yes, Frank Gehry's "archetectue" is literally garbage.
Usually for me the farther out the better but these just look like a wadded up jumble to me. Novel but I wouldn't want to have to look at them every day.
He's probably snickering to himself and thinking he got the better of all these people and really designed these structures after crumpled up shapes of paper he dug out of the garbage.
Load More Replies...Yeah, I wouldn't want to look at them every day, but it's cool to see them as photographs.
Load More Replies...Personally I prefer the "golden rectangle" or golden ration as in Frank Lloyd Wright.
I absolutely loved this! The comments on these are absolutely hilarious pml
Gehry and Rem Koolhaas are my favorite architects. I'm sad that Gehry's idea for the Guggenheim on the East River in New York City never came to fruition.
They are amazing and unique works of art that add variety and whimsy to a world that can be so cold and callous. It's wonderful to see someone bringing a little magic and wonder to a planet that seems to be consumed by more and more hate every day. Thank you for sharing and Thank you Mr. Gehry for sharing your talents with the rest of the human race.
I watched them build "New York by Gerhy" @ 8 Spruce St, in lower Manhattan. It was too close to Ground Zero to make a building that conveyed images of twisted metal. Especially during the construction phase.
For all you people cringing at this, these are works of art except on a bigger scale, and if you didn't like this, why did you look at it.
They ALL hurt my eyes. I occasionally drive by his Las Vegas monstrosity and cringe every time. Garbage.
I thought the same thing about the EMP building in Seattle when it first went up. But after experiencing it from the inside..it's actually quite remarkable how these are designed.
Load More Replies...If all of the buildings are in my neighbourhood, I would think of it as a mental hospital village
I personally thought that some of these were super cool. Ex: The Panama one was super cool. But there were others like the Guggenheim one was not so whimsical. These are my opinions and I respect all of your opinions please respect mine.
In the old times they had less and made stunning buildings. Today they have more and cant even buy creativity ....
These are...interesting. I'm not sure I'd want to live in something like this, but it appears most of them are museums of some sort anyway. And, as much as I usually don't like 'modern art/modern architecture' these are kind of cool. They're different, unusual and I suppose fit in with the flow of these crazy times we live in. Would also love to see the inside, is it normal(bar windows/some angled walls) or equally crazy?
I want to see what these things look like inside. How much usable space is there?
I'd be interested to see how the interior exists inside those shells. Is there a lot of non-usable space as a result of the exterior shapes? Generally the outside of a building is reflection of the interior space, and that's honestly how it ought to be. If he's inverted that, then the interior still needs not to be squandered by useless external extravagance.
I despise every one of these designs with the fire of a thousand suns. They look like enormous piles of street litter or junk. This man is the definition of pretension run rampant. There is no grace or beauty to any of these and I bet most lack functionality as well. The Biomuseo in Panama looks like a cluster of the proverbial "shanty town down by the river." This man is the world's worst living architect who defiles every landscape he touches, inflicting these monstrosities on the public is epic visual/spatial douchebaggery. Why can the people funding this garbage just stop...proof positive that money can buy neither taste nor in the case of Gehry's behavior class.
Obviously you don' t understand the concept of art.......I understand people have personal taste but to speak so poorly of an artist (who has won 22 awards by the way) and insulting his behavior, personality and motives is absolutely disgusting. He does not inflict his 'visual douchbaggery' on the landscape, other people commission him to design buildings like this, and they pass many different approval processes before they are built. Obviously you wouldn't know that because you can't comprehend how anybody could have a different opinion to you, let alone the thousands who appreciate his art. If you don't like it, just move on and don't try and raise yourself by putting down others. Sad.
Load More Replies...These all look like they were designed by Salvador Dali (The guy who painted the melting clocks)
Düsseldorf, in Germany, also hosts the Gehry buildings on the city harbor. i was there last autumn, for work - there's a great restaurant on the ground floor of one of the buildings, i got there at night and thought i was hallucinating, then figured it out ;)
It's not my money so I really don't care, but I've always thought that Gehry just rolls a galvanized garbage can down a cliff and goes from there. If he's not laughing his a*s off all the way to the bank, I'd be surprised.
God I hate Frank Gehry's work so much. The Simpsons did it best when, if I remember right, Springfield hires Gehry to design a new school and he is inspired by a crumpled up piece of paper. Yes, Frank Gehry's "archetectue" is literally garbage.