Frank Gehry

His passing marks the end of an era in modern architecture.

Born Ephraim Owen Goldberg in Toronto in 1929, Gehry moved to Los Angeles in 1947 and graduated from the University of Southern California’s School of Architecture in 1954. He adopted the name Gehry early in his career and went on to redefine the possibilities of design.

His style, often described as deconstructivist, rejected traditional forms in favour of sculptural, fragmented structures that blurred the line between architecture and art.

Gehry’s most celebrated works include the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, a building credited with revitalising the Spanish city’s economy and cultural identity; the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, with its sweeping steel curves; and the Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris, a collaboration with Bernard Arnault that became a landmark of contemporary art.

He also designed Berlin’s DZ Bank Building and contributed to projects for major corporations, including Facebook’s headquarters.

Over his career spanning nearly eight decades, Gehry received architecture’s highest honours, including the Pritzker Prize in 1989, the AIA Gold Medal, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. His work was praised for being “refreshingly original and totally American,” combining bold experimentation with a deep sensitivity to place.