10 of the most emblematic buildings of Frank Gehry, the architectural giant who has died at the age of 96

Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry stands in front of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao during its 25th anniversary celebration in the Basque city of Bilbao on October 17, 2022. (Photo by Ander Gilenya/AFP) (Photo by Ander Gilenya/AFP via Getty Images) — photo caption, Frank Gehry was one of the most influential architects of the century.

- author, Sakshi Venkatraman
- Author title, BBC News
7 hours

Frank Gehry, considered one of the most influential architects of the century, has died at the age of 96.

Gehry was known for his avant-garde and experimental architectural style. His design for the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, clad in corrugated titanium, catapulted him to fame in 1997, while putting the Basque city on the international map.

He built his bold reputation years ago by remodeling his own home in Santa Monica, California, using materials like chain-link mesh, plywood, and corrugated steel.

His chief of staff, Megan Lloyd, told the BBC on Friday: “Gerry leaves behind two daughters from his first marriage, Leslie and Brenna, his wife Berta Isabel Aguilera, and two sons Alejandro and Samuel.”

Side view of the Guggenheim Museum, next to the Nervion River, in Bilbao, Spain, 2021. (Photo: Sergi Reboredo/VW Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) — photo caption, The Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao catapulted Frank Gehry to fame and put the Basque city on the international map.

Born in Toronto, Canada, in 1929, Gehry moved to Los Angeles as a teenager to study architecture at the University of Southern California.

After establishing his own studio, he broke with traditional architectural principles of symmetry, using unconventional geometric forms and unfinished materials in a style now known as Deconstructivism.

“I rebelled against everything,” Jerry declared in an interview with New York Times In 2012.

His work in Bilbao made him a sought-after architect, and he later designed iconic structures in cities around the world: the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago’s Millennium Park, the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, both in the United States, the Gehry Tower in Hannover, Germany, and the Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris.

Famed architect Frank Gehry is photographed in an outdoor seating area at Sed Bar, part of the Conrad Los Angeles, a luxury Hilton hotel, within The Grand LA development, directly across from the Walt Disney Concert Hall, which Gehry also designed, in downtown Los Angeles, California, on Monday, June 20, 2022. (Photo: J.L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) — photo caption, The Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles is one of Gehry’s works in the California city.

A view of the Dancing House is a deconstructive building by Nationale-Nederlanden, designed by Croatian-Czech architect Vlado Meloni in collaboration with Frank Gehry and facing the Vltava River in Prague, Czech Republic, on August 5, 2022. (Photo by Oscar González/Noor Photo via Getty Images) — photo caption, The Prague Dancing House was a collaboration between Frank Gehry and the Croatian-Czech architect Vlado Meloni.

Fondation Louis Vuitton, an art museum and cultural center designed by architect Frank Gehry, in the Bois de Boulogne, in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, on May 20, 2017. (Photo by Alberto Bezzali/Noor Photo via Getty Images) — photo caption, The Louis Vuitton Foundation, in the heart of the Bois de Boulogne in Paris, is also the work of Frank Gehry.

A view of the Jay Pritzker Pavilion, designed by famed architect Frank Gehry at Millennium Park in Chicago, Illinois, US, on May 24, 2024. (Photo by Aytak Unal/Anatolia via Getty Images) — photo caption, A view of the Jay Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park in Chicago.

With a style that is largely unpredictable, each of his works is unique.

The Dancing House in Prague, completed in 1996, looks like a glass building that folds itself; His Bodegas Marqués de Riscal in Spain, built in 2006, features thin sheets of corrugated metal and hues in various wine tones.

Meanwhile, his design for a Sydney business school looks like a brown paper bag.

Archive photo of the 76-storey building "New York by Gehry at 8 Spruce Street." Taken on March 2, 2011 in New York. Gehry created the largest residential building in the Western Hemisphere with his first major residential project in New York City. AFP/DON EMMERT PHOTO (Image source should read DON EMMERT/AFP via Getty Images) — photo caption, A giant, luxurious 76-story residential building designed by Frank Gehry located on Spruce Street in New York.

Exterior of the Hotel Bodega Marqués de Riscal, designed by architect Frank Gehry, in Rioja Alavesa, Alava, Arrabá Euscal Herria, Euskadi, Spain. (Photo: Sergi Riborido/VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) — photo caption, In the hotel he designed for the Marquis de Riscal wineries, Frank Gehry added color to his signature sinuous lines and mineral materials: wine red.

The new Frank Gehry-designed Chow Chak Wing Business School building at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), pictured on February 3, 2015. (Photo by Saeed Khan/AFP via Getty Images) — photo caption, The University of Technology Sydney’s Chow Chak Wing Business School features an undulating brick facade.

This aerial view shows the BioMuseo, dedicated to Panama's biodiversity and natural history, in Panama City on September 30, 2025. (Photo by Martin Peretti/AFP) (Photo by Martin Peretti/AFP via Getty Images) — photo caption, The Bio-Museum of Panama, designed by Frank Gehry, is dedicated to biodiversity.

Established in 1994, the Panama Bio Museum is the first bio museum in Latin America and opened its doors in 2016.

Gehry won the prestigious Pritzker Architecture Prize for lifetime achievement in 1989, when he was 60 years old.

Interior of the DZ Bank hall, designed by architect Frank Gehry, Pariser Platz, in the Mitte district, Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Henri-Alain Segalin/Gamma-Ravo via Getty Images) — photo caption, View of the interior hall of DZ Bank in Berlin.

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