Frank Gehry archives acquired by Getty Institute

The Getty Research Institute announced today that it has acquired the archives of Pritzker architect Frank Gehry, who is known for iconic buildings like the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, and the Fondation Louis Vuitton in France.

The Frank Gehry Papers spans the first three decades of Gehry’s illustrious career, beginning with his early graduate studies in 1954 all the way up to the 1988 entry for the Walt Disney Concert Hall competition.

The extensive archive comprises hundreds of thousands of sketches, working drawings, partial and complete models, project documentation, correspondence, photographs and slides, and ephemera associated with 283 projects.

Frank Gehry Papers at the Getty Research Institute, © Frank O. Gehry

The acquisition, which is part purchase and part gift, also includes materials produced after 1988 for projects that began before that time, as well as digital files related to Gehry’s work developing design software platforms.

A selection from the archive will be on view next month as part of an exhibition at the Getty Center called “Berlin/Los Angeles: Space for Music,” which spotlights Gehry’s Walt Disney hall and the Berlin Philharmonic designed by Hans Scharoun.

The 89-year-old starchitect, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom last year, is even venturing into online teaching. A 15-video lesson series is available through MasterClass for $90 starting this spring.

Frank Gehry Papers at the Getty Research Institute, © Frank O. Gehry