Journal 12
The Guggenheim located in the Upper East Side of Manhattan designed by Frank Lloyd Wright is a museum with a structure that is out of the norm. He wanted to experiment and play with the fluidity of space in an innovative way. The structure is built with a spherical shape that is seen in the inside and the outside. During the beginning of the creation of the design, there were many controversies on its shape and design.
The Guggenheim was considered as an imperfect building. This is because technology at this time was not at its depth. This means that he was learning about new buildings and forms which he wanted to create. Although, technology didn’t allow him to create forms that were interactive the way that he wanted it to be. For example, Wright envisioned the museums facade to be in red marble. According to him, Red marble represents the color of creation. However, he eventually thought that white appears smoother rather than jagged lines that would be seen from the marble.
Even if the museum is located beside Central Park, Frank Lloyd Wright wanted this structure to feel enclosed. Inside the space, windows are only seen on the ground floor.
His vision for the audience’s experience in this space was to go up to the very top floor in an elevator while looking out through its glass doors. Once you reach the top of the museum, you slowly make your way down while appreciating the art displayed and the overall architectural structure. Unfortunately, Wright was never able to see the final structure due to his unexpected death.
The Guggenheim Bilbao located in Spain have very similar aesthetics to the one in New York City. This is because Frank Gehry was greatly influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright during his design process. The Guggenheim Bilbao displays a similar shape in its spherical design, however, it extends on its sides as well. Additionally, the material he utilizes is titanium which creates a very different vibe compared to the one in New York City.
The Guggenheim
The Guggenheim Bilbao