« Forest City in the News | Main | No Longer If; The Sun Sets »
October 1, 2008
Frank Gehry's really bad year
For years the architect has been lauded for ushering in a new cultural era. But the climate appears to be shifting.
Macleans
By Nancy MacDonald
As starchitect Frank Gehry's reputation begins to sour, he has "become a lightning rod for criticism of developer Bruce Ratner's controversial Atlantic Yards development."
There's a "culture of affirmation that surrounds Gehry," says the well-known art critic and Princeton professor Hal Foster. "The same buildings that leak, burn and moulder would cost any other architect their job and reputation," says one Manhattan-based critic, who asked to remain anonymous. Yet "major newspapers, art critics and museums" continue to "hold Gehry up," he says.
...
The climate, however, appears to be shifting. This summer, The Economist dubbed Gehry "the one-trick pony's one-trick pony," who "merely plonks down the same lump of product time and again across the globe." His notoriously costly and resource-heavy designs seem increasingly vulgar, given heightened environmental concerns and the softening economy. Indeed, the focus of the profession has turned to green or sustainable design, says Jeffrey Ochsner, professor of architecture at the University of Washington.
...
Meanwhile, back in Brooklyn, Gehry is dealing with far worse than a lost theatre contract.
...
"Gehry has taken a big risk," says urban historian Witold Rybczynski. "It is a very big project. And it is in New York, where all the media are. If that project goes bad, it would tarnish his reputation. Instead of being a capstone, it would be a blot on his career."
Posted by lumi at October 1, 2008 6:21 AM