Reading today’s Sydney Morning Herald (as I do everyday from San Diego) I read that Architect Frank Gehry has unveiled his first project in Sydney – a new building at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). You can read the article here if you like.
It got me thinking that I have now been living in California for almost 6 years & one of the things that I try not to take for granted, is the access to some amazing architecture. SO, a ‘must-do’ trip that Ivan & I make every year is up to Los Angeles to visit (& revisit) some of Gehry’s works that are no more than an easy 2hr drive away. Anyone who would have heard one of our rants & raves about architecture & design knows that we are fans of his work, but also as designers we are constantly looking to improve & educate ourselves, and part of understanding architecture & design is not just the magic of unveiling new designs, but the understanding the longevity of them also. How do buildings react as they age? How does it interact with the urban fabric? How do pedestrians move around it? Part of this investigation to understand the work from the mind of Frank Gehry is to, well…visit them a lot. So I thought I might share a collection of just a few photographs that we have taken on these trips.
We generally start by visiting his house which is in Santa Monica. On a typical suburban style street, the house certainly stands out. Most people would say “well of course it stands out, he has chain-link fence off the roof!” – but I think that it stands out firstly through the use of the landscaping. Being the world-renowned Architect that he is, and having such an accessible house on the street, he has used the landscaping to create privacy to the house making it very difficult to see what he has done to the form of the house. I am sure that just like us, there are many students, architects, designers & fans that just can’t help but come to see this amazing house. As you can see in the images, I couldn’t resist taking a quick peek into the backyard for a quick glimpse of some of the interesting alterations he has done…sorry Mr. Gehry!
We have also visited many times the Walt Disney Concert hall in downtown LA. It’s such an awe-inspiring building in the middle of a very busy City. People just stand around it, viewing it – watching as it changes color as the sun moves around it. Over the many times I have been there, I have seen buskers making music leaning up against the exterior walls, students sitting on the steps drawing a part of the building, tourists photographing the building, and well, even been photographed myself taking in the wonders (see below). Whatever you think of Gehry’s work, you can’t deny that this building certainly brings a wonderful sense of creativity & inspiration to the people who choose to interact with it. Whenever someone asks me what I think, my reply is always “it sure makes you wonder”.
The third building that we have visited is the Irvine Ice Hockey Rink. Gehry’s obsession with the game of ice hockey lead to this project. Being Australian, I don’t have the greatest experience with traditional ice hockey rink architecture, so I refer to what I have read about it to be able to appreciate that his design intent was to emulate the classic Canadian architecture for the sport. Not knowing this when I saw it for the first time, I was really liked the unassuming nature of the exterior, a simple but very elegant curved metal facade, followed by the wonderful detailing of the timber structure inside, and the hive of activity & action of some young hockey players having a game inside, who really didn’t think twice about the architecture, but more about the fun they where having inside it.
