Talk:Frank Gehry
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article is within the scope of the Columbia University WikiProject, a collaborative effort to improve Wikipedia's coverage of Columbia University, her schools, environs, and people. If you would like to participate, you can visit the project page, where you can join the project and see a list of open tasks. |
 |
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Canada and related WikiProjects, an attempt to build a comprehensive and detailed guide to articles on Canada-related topics. If you would like to participate, visit the project member page, to join the project and/or contribute to the discussion. |
| B | This article has been rated as B-Class on the quality scale. |
| Low | This article has been rated as Low-importance on the importance scale. |
 |
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Biography. For more information, visit the project page. | ||
| B | This article has been rated as B-Class on the project's quality scale. [FAQ] | ||
 |
This article is supported by the Science and academia work group. | ||
 |
This article covers subjects of relevance to Architecture. To participate, visit the WikiProject Architecture for more information. The current monthly improvement drive is Johannes Itten. |
| B | This article has been rated as B-Class on the assessment scale. |
| High | This article has been rated as high-importance on the assessment scale. |
[edit] Does this sound like it should be in an encyclopedia?
I'm asking because a lot of what I read in this article is personal opinion. The best example is one of the last line's in Criticism, "This argument ignores the unprecedented amount of power Gehry holds in negotiations with clients, and the artistic integrity he must possess in order to achieve what he has. The similarities in his latest masterpieces are more akin to an artist fleshing out the frontier of a stylistic universe then a hack stamping out product for demanding clients."
Umm, I'm no publisher but that probably wouldn't be something found in a professional Encyclopedia that you'd pay money for. I'm no architect so honestly I'm no help, but this REALLY needs a clean up tag and a good re-write. Meat and potatoes guys! No opinions! 76.172.250.188 07:01, 29 October 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Canadian architect
I see that Gehry has been categorized as a "Canadian architect" Since he moved to the U.S. as a teenager, was educated in the U.S., and his whole career has been based in the U.S., that does not seem to be an accurate categorization. I'd split the difference and call him a U.S. architect and a person from Canada. Any other thoughts? -Willmcw July 5, 2005 21:17 (UTC)
- Frank Gehry was Born in Canada , Done Work in Canada , and been given the Order of Canada. So to Me that Classifies Him As A Canadian.
-
- He moved when he was a young person, was educated in the states, has been based in the LA area for his entire professional career, and is a naturalized American citizen... Bruce Willis was born in Germany, maybe he should be considered a German actor! Bobak 02:35, 24 March 2006 (UTC)
Frank Gehry is a naturalized american citizen. He holds few, if any, ties to his native born Toronto in his day to day work. Furthermore, the archectural world considers his work to be derived almost exclusively from his experiences in Los Angeles. Considering his comments and practice on the disposable commodity of architecture and it's pop value with his seminal work in Santa Monica, on Wilshire Boulevard being LA's "linear" downtown, the exclusive emphasis of his Canadian nationalism in the opening passage is wishful in thinking, pretensive, and intellectually dishonest as it completely depends on the rather undemonstrable, limited impact of Gehry's having been physically born and raised in Canada, especially in light if his long-renounced Canadian citizenship. At the least, also emphasize that Gehry is currently a Los Angeles architect, as no architecture scholar would attribute to Toronto a significant amount of influence on his work, especially considering he is often referred to as part of an emerging but controversial "Los Angeles School" or "Santa Monica School" of architecture. I have additionally to suggest that the writer of this article educate him/herself more on the meaning of decon, modernism, and it's relationship with Frank Gehry. I don't believe the writer understands the meaning of decon, modernism, or Gehry's allegiance to it, and this article deserves severe formatting if it seeks to become credible to an actual architect. I truly believe the writer "googled" bits and pieces of Gehry-related info with little genuine understanding of arhitecture, and tried to pass off this information as researched. It appears this article is a vain and shameful attempt by a Canadian sympathist to tie Gehry to Toronto at the expense of all other truths. I don't feel like editing the entire article right now, but if no genuinely knowlegable (and honest) person decides to step in, I'll eventually delete the whole thing myself and start anew.
[edit] Cleanup required
IMO, this article badly needs a rewrite. It doesn't follow any real structure, and in some places is a bit POV. I'm going to add a cleanup tag so hopefully it will get some more attention. --K. AKA Konrad West TALK 02:02, 26 July 2005 (utc)
[edit] 2 things: get a better Chiat/Day photo + "Most famous work"?
Two quick things:
- The photo of Chiat/Day ("the binocular building") is incomplete. The person who took it must not have realized the white structure to the left is a part of the original iconic design (although it isn't as obvious as the other two sections). I hope someone in LA can take a better photo including the whole facade.
- Bilbao is certainly once of his more notable works, but it's a little hasty to label it his most famous. At best, it's a distinction that can be made in the (hopefully far) future when he's pushing up daisies.
Bobak 02:33, 24 March 2006 (UTC)
^I definitely agree. I've formatted it to sound a bit less suggestive.
I would argue that Bilbao is his single most famous work to date. It marked major breakthroughs in both construction (aviation software used to feed computer model to the machining equipment, which bent the metal with precision into otherwise impossible forms) and building materials technology (the team spent months developing treatments for the titanium---and who who else has a titanium building?!?!). It also receives huge amounts of attention simply for its radical appearance. You'll be hard-pressed to find discussion about Gehry published since Bilbao's construction that doesn't mention it. The building itself "put Bilbao on the map" on a global scale. It is an archetypal example of Architourism. Also, it established Gehry's signature twisted metal forms more aggressively (more purely and on a larger scale) than any project before it. The building is also an important example in specific topics, including museum expansions (a major issue at the moment, as the Guggenheim and Louvre both pursue controversial expansion projects) and economic revitalization. Bilbao has become important not just as a building but as a model of the revitalization process. Since Bilbao Gehry has received many commissions that use the same techniques and forms. This includes not only buildings, which there have been many of, but also consumer items such as his line of jewelry for Tiffany&Co. Though "most famous" is very subjective, it is very arguably the case. And I would bet that, if one were inclined to collect quantitative data from all published materials regarding Frank Gehry, Bilbao would be his most-mentioned project.Ninjakiyoko 06:02, 23 March 2007 (UTC)
[edit] winery
Several years ago it was announced that Gehry would be designing a winery near Niagara Falls http://www.arcspace.com/architects/gehry/Winery/index.htm I couldn't find any recent information about whether the project is going forward or has been cancelled.—The preceding unsigned comment was added by 72.57.222.127 (talk • contribs) .
[edit] Peix d'Or (The Golden Fish)
I'm wondering why The Golden Fish in the Barcelona Olympic Harbour is not listed among his works.
[edit] Santa Monica School of Architecture
Dear folks:
I'm not sure the term Santa Monica School of Architecture is really apt here. It's not a term that most architectural historians use. it may be a worthwhile phrase, but I would love to see it discussed a bit. I have seen the term pop up in student papers due to its mention in wiki.
thoreau
-
- Good thought. I added a statement on the "Santa Monica School" and "Los Angeles School" which avoids the confusion. I have seen the phrases thrown around a bit in architecture circles, but I have yet to see it formalized in academic circles with the same weight of usage as the historic Bauhaus, Chicago, or New York Schools. Thanks for the suggestion.
[edit] influenced by steiner???
gehry is listed in a list of scientists scholars, authors and artists who have been deeply influenced by Steiner anybody an opinion on this? trueblood 07:09, 31 August 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Anon blanking and additions
There was a bunch of incremental blanking by one anon of contributions by another anon 72.129.5.232 (talk · contribs). I've reverted the blanking but someone knowledgable should probably verify the additions. Kellen T 12:05, 18 December 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Origin
He is of Polish-Jewish origin. I know that from Polityka, a leading Polish magazine. Kowalmistrz 21:36, 4 January 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Opening Paragraph
"his private residence in Santa Monica, California, the latter of which jump-started his substantive career and lifted it from the stature of "paper architecture", a phenomenon in which many famous architects are observed to have experienced their formative decades experimenting almost exclusively on paper before receiving their first major commission in their later years." Not exactly true. He had designed dozens of buildings before that point, and had 45 people working for him. - Richy 14:00, 9 January 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Deconstructivism
The articles states that Gehry's work is sometimes considered Deconstructivist, though Gehry disavows association with the movement. It must be noted that Gehry was included in the somewhat "definitive" (at least in the architectural cannon) exhibition titled "Deconstructivist Architecture" curated by Philip Johnson and Mark Wigley at the Museum of Modern Art in 1988. This exhibition effectively launched deconstructivism as a clearly defined genre, and Gehry was indeed one of the 7 architects chosen to be in the group. I would assume that Gehry gave his consent in some way in order for his work to be included in this exhibition, and if a source can prove that he did consent, it proves that Gehry did in at least one way associate himself openly with the docnstructivist style. Let us not forget the impact Philip Johnson's "International Style" exhibition had on the international scene. Regardless of Gehry's personal wishes, he must be considered a deconstructivist.
Further proof of Gehry's deconstructivist stylistic tendencies is found in his own Santa Monica home, which is very literally deconstructivist; the house is cut open to make visible the frame and other construction materials, then added onto with a similar aesthetic. Is this debatable?
Additionally, the section about deconstructivism contains excess information that should be moved to the deconstructivism page. Ninjakiyoko 18 March 2007
[edit] Nationality
An anon editor recently edited the infobox to indicate that Gehry's nationality is "Dual American / Canadian Citizen". The edit was reverted by User:Freshacconci.
Gehry is a dual citizen. Absent a source indicting that Gehry no longer considers himself Canadian (which may actually not be sufficient), or has renounced his Canadian citizenship, his nationality is both American and Canadian. Any assessment of his nationality (such as the older discussion above) based on his perceived "ties" to either country, or whether or not his work reflects his adopted hometown rather than the country of his birth, is an innappropriate violation of WP:OR. The fact that he has lived in L.A. most of his life is irrelevant -- the infobox input deals with nationality, not place of residence. Skeezix1000 (talk) 13:57, 1 April 2008 (UTC)
[edit] early works vs later works
I think this needs a discussion of Gehry's early, more conservative works in the 1980s compared to the more radical designs that came after. What was the genesis of the change in style? Was it simply that they couldn't be designed and/or built without advanced CAD systems, or that clients rejected his designs? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 207.224.54.128 (talk) 21:22, 11 May 2008 (UTC)
