Frank Gehry, the globally renowned architect whose deconstructivist designs reshaped skylines and redefined museum experiences, has died at the age of 95. Gehry passed away on December 5,2025,leaving behind a legacy of iconic buildings-from the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao to the Walt Disney Concert Hall-that challenged architectural norms and captivated audiences worldwide.
Gehry’s death marks the end of an era in architecture, impacting not only the field’s aesthetic direction but also the way buildings interact with their surrounding environments and the people who inhabit them. His innovative use of materials,particularly titanium,and his willingness to embrace complex forms established him as a visionary,influencing generations of architects and solidifying his place as one of the most crucial figures of the 20th and 21st centuries. The future of several ongoing projects, including the still-incomplete Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, is now uncertain.
Born Frank Owen Goldberg on February 28, 1929, in Toronto, Canada, Gehry later adopted his wife Berta’s surname. He initially studied engineering before turning to architecture, earning a Bachelor of Architecture degree from the University of Southern California in 1954. Early in his career, gehry experimented with various styles before developing his signature deconstructivist aesthetic, characterized by fragmented forms, twisting surfaces, and a rejection of traditional symmetry.
his breakthrough came with the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao (1997), a titanium-clad masterpiece that revitalized the Spanish city and established Gehry as an international star. This was followed by other landmark projects,including the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles (2003),the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago’s Millennium Park (2004),and the maggie’s cancer care center in Dundee (2003),designed as a personal tribute to Charles Jencks’ wife,Maggie,who died in 1995. More recently, Gehry contributed to the Luma Arles creative campus in southern France (2021) with a structure incorporating 11,000 stainless steel panels.
Beyond large-scale commissions, Gehry’s work also included more intimate designs, demonstrating a versatility that underscored his commitment to the human experience of architecture. Throughout his career, he was supported by his wife, Berta, who managed the financial aspects of his practice and fostered a familial atmosphere within his organization.
He is survived by his wife,Berta,and their two sons,Sam and Alejandro,as well as his daughter,Brina,from his first marriage to Anita snyder. Another daughter from that marriage, Leslie, died in 2008. Charles Jencks, a close friend and collaborator, died in 2019.
