Global Guggenheims to Louis Vuitton: Frank Gehry's Humanist Legacy

Frank Gehry’s Humanist Legacy: Global Guggenheims to Louis Vuitton AOC New Humanism

The moment AOC heard the sad news of the passing of architect Frank Gehry, Anne went to LVMH website.

As expected, a message from Bernard Arnault was waiting for us all. It reads:

"I am profoundly saddened by the passing of Frank Gehry, in whom I lose a very dear friend and for whom I shall forever retain boundless admiration. I owe to him one of the longest, most intense, and most ambitious creative partnerships I have ever had the privilege to experience. His oeuvre, crowned by the Pritzker Prize, is immense. He will remain a genius of lightness, transparency, and grace. Frank Gehry—who possessed an unparalleled gift for shaping forms, pleating glass like canvas, making it dance like a silhouette—will long endure as a living source of inspiration for Louis Vuitton as well as for all the Maisons of the LVMH group. With the Fondation Louis Vuitton pour la Création, he bestowed upon Paris and upon France his greatest masterpiece, the highest expression of his creative power, commensurate with the friendship he bore our city and the affection he showed for our culture.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom

In 2016, Frank Gehry’s accomplishments were honored by President Barack Obama with the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The presidential awards citation, read in part, “never limited by conventional materials, styles, or processes, Frank Gehry’s bold and thoughtful structures demonstrate architecture’s power to induce wonder and revitalize communities.” It continues, “From his pioneering use of technology to the dozens of awe-inspiring sights that bear his signature style, to his public service as a citizen artist through his work with Turnaround Arts, Frank Gehry has proven himself an exemplar of American innovation.”

Anne shares her own deeply-felt thoughts about the loss of Frank Gehry, a humanist who has inspired her thinking for decades. Read on.