There is only one Frank Gehry, which is good. But that one is necessary. (From time to time) we need icons, extravagances, gigantic ships made of glass, photos to teach, the formal interpretation of a particularly creative American on the architecture of iron and glass of the late nineteenth century in France. Specially if it is promoted by a private institution.
This is what comes to mind when I walk around the imposing building on a day in which the rain and the sun alternate, creating opposing effects on its facade. Sometimes this skin resembles a shiny shell and sometimes a filter in which the gentle reflection of the surrounding vegetation melts with the mega structure that holds the 3,600 glass panels that compose it. I have no time to visit the interior of the building, but I think I am not missing much, because the initial "wow" has already been released.
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The building, as a center for art and events, could have worked practically well without all that megalornament. However, it would have become just one more building, a deedless block in the middle of Bois de Boulogne Park. These excesses, excellently built after an extraordinary job by slaves in an architecture studio, attract people, provoke excitement, elevate the building to the level of "monument", cathedral, palace, triumphal arch of contemporary life.
The project / architect initially faced problems with the municipal regulation; the association of friends of Bois de Boulogne Park; an initial budget that was multiplied during the process; the force of gravity; Autocad FATAL Errors; the financial crisis of 2008... But, after 8 years (2006-2014), it was completed. An imposing glass boat that fights against all odds and stays afloat. From the point of view of an architect, (obviating tastes and prejudices founded during my studies of architecture in a fairly conservative school), I admire each and every single actor involved in the project.
I admire Gehry's ego, self-confidence, that finger that he gives to the journalists Prince of Asturias prize press conference in 2014. I admire the construction managers, the engineers paying attention to some crazy architects and some crazy architects trying of explaining to stubborn engineers what they want. A very complex process (more than 400 people involved), a story behind each building, after all. A story that, in fact, really begins once the doors of the building open and it starts to evolve through its active and passive users.
I've had the chance to visit a few projects done by Frank Gehry and I liked them, especially the Guggenheim of Bilbao, because of its impact on the city, in spite of the fact that the Guggenheim "effect" in Spain was very harmful. But I have also been positively surprised by his residential buildings in Prague and Hong Kong, as they combine the regularity and rationality of this typology with beautiful curved lines that make them light, dynamic and sensual without looking pretentious.
