Building Art: The Life and Work of Frank Gehry

(Paperback)

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Here, from Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Paul Goldberger, is the first full-fledged critical biography of Frank Gehry, undoubtedly the most famous architect of our time. Goldberger follows Gehry from his humble origins-the son of working-class Jewish immigrants in Toronto-to the heights of his extraordinary career. He explores Gehry's relationship to Los Angeles, a city that welcomed outsider artists and profoundly shaped him in his formative years. He surveys the full range of his work, from the Bilbao Guggenheim to the Walt Disney Concert Hall in L.A. to the architect's own home in Santa Monica, which galvanized his neighbors and astonished the world. He analyzes his carefully crafted persona, in which an amiable surface masks a driving ambition. And he discusses his use of technology, not just to change the way a building looks, but to revolutionize the very practice of the field. Comprehensive and incisive, Building Art is a sweeping view of a singular artist-and an essential story of architecture's modern era.

Reviews

Fascinating. . . . An informative, startling journey into the inner sanctums of modern architectures power structure. The New York Times Book Review

Revealing. . . . A penetrating portrait. Morning Edition/NPR

Riveting. . . . Full of little-known facts about the Pritzker Prize-winner that will surprise the most knowledgable Gehry-philes. Architectural Digest

Excellent and comprehensive. . . . Undeniably fascinating. Bloomberg

Terrifically readable. . . . Satisfying detail on Gehrys career path and hugely complex personality. Los Angeles Times

Convey[s] the architects personality and process with deft strokes that have an artistic ease of their own. . . . If youre intrigued by Frank Gehry . . . I cant recommend this expansive survey of his life and work too highly. John King, San Francisco Chronicle

Fascinating. . . . Agilely balances the disparate subjects of art and biography. Goldbergers critical assessments of Gehrys designs are insightful and often riveting. Richmond Times-Dispatch

Critically fluent, socially and psychologically acute. . . . An involving work of significant architectural history and a discerning and affecting portrait of a daring and original master builder. Booklist (starred review)

This full-length critical study of an important contemporary architect is by one of our finest architectural critics. . . . [An] outstanding volume. . . . Highly recommended. Library Journal (starred review)

Richly researched, intelligent, and graceful. Kirkus Reviews

[Goldberger] contextualizes Gehrys work with smart discussions of trends in Modernism and the Los Angeles art scene that inspired such trends, and offers his usual shrewd, evocative insights into the look and feel of buildings. Publishers Weekly

Author Bio

Paul Goldberger,a contributing editor atVanity Fair,spent fifteen years as the architecture critic forThe New Yorkerand began his career atThe New York Times,where he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism for his writing on architecture. He is the author of many books, most recentlyWhy Architecture Matters, Building Up and Tearing Down- Reflections on the Age of Architecture,andUp From Zero.He teaches at The New School and lectures widely around the country on architecture, design, historic preservation, and cities. He and his wife, Susan Solomon, live in New York City.