All,
My criteria here is this: would this project have won the 25 year award had not the architect become wildly famous? Had
I done this project, would it have won this prestigious honor? Do architects come to Santa Monica to see this house itself, or to see the famous Frank Gehry's house? I suggest the latter. I also suggest that the 25 year award winners should transcend style, fashion, trend and most of all personality; a true icon of architecture. For me the Gehry house, fun as it is, does not reach that level. Look at the other winners and see if this house is in the same league (OK, there are a few questionable ones in here, but you get my point).
Air Force Academy Chapel, by
Walter Netsch/ SOM, at Colorado Springs, Colorado, 1956 to 1962.
Bavinger House, by Bruce Goff, at Norman, Oklahoma, 1950 to 1955.
Crow Island School, by Eliel Saarinen, at Winnetka, Illinois, 1939 to 1940.
Design Research Headquarters, by Benjamin Thompson, at Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1969.
Dulles Airport, by Eero Saarinen, at Chantilly, Virginia, 1958 to 1962.
Eames House, by Charles Eames, at Pacific Palisades, California, 1945 to 1949.
East Wing, National Gallery, by I. M. Pei, at Washington, D.C., 1974 to 1978.
Equitable Building, by Pietro Belluschi, at Portland, Oregon, 1944 to 1948.
Exeter Library, by Louis I. Kahn, at Exeter, New Hampshire, 1967 to 1972.
Farnsworth House, by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, at Plano, Illinois, 1946 to 1950.
Ford Foundation Building, by Roche-Dinkeloo, at New York, New York, 1963 to 1968.
Gateway Arch, by Eero Saarinen, at St. Louis, Missouri, 1947 competition, construction 1961 to 1966.
Gehry House, by Frank Gehry, at Santa Monica, California, 1978.
Guggenheim Museum, by Frank Lloyd Wright, at New York, New York, 1956 to 1959.
John Deere and Company, by Eero Saarinen, at Moline, Illinois, 1963.
John Hancock Center, by Bruce Graham/ SOM, at Chicago, Illinois, 1970.
Johnson House, "The Glass House", by Philip Johnson, at New Caanan, Connecticut, 1949.
Johnson Wax Building, by Frank Lloyd Wright, at Racine, Wisconsin, 1936 to 1939 and 1944.
Kimbell Museum, by Louis I. Kahn, at Fort Worth, Texas, 1967 to 1972.
Lake Shore Drive Apts, by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, at Chicago, Illinois, 1948 to 1951.
Lever House, by Gordon Bunshaft/ SOM, at New York, New York, 1950 to 1952.
Price Tower, by Frank Lloyd Wright, at Bartlesville, Oklahoma, 1952 to 1956.
Rockefeller Center, by Raymond Hood, at New York, New York, 1932 to 1940.
Salk Institute, by Louis I. Kahn, at La Jolla, California, 1959 to 1966.
Sea Ranch Condominium, by MLTW, at Sea Ranch, California, 1964 to 1965.
Seagram Building, by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, at New York, New York, 1954 to 1958.
Taliesin West, by Frank Lloyd Wright, at Scottsdale, Arizona, 1937 onward.
University Art Center, by Louis I. Kahn, at New Haven, Connecticut, 1951 to 1954.
Vanna Venturi House, by Robert Venturi, at Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1962.
Glenn MacCullough, AIA
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Glenn MacCullough AIA
MacCullough Architects, P.C.
Arlington VA
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Original Message:
Sent: 01-25-2012 01:29
From: Lori Schneider
Subject: Gehry Residence AIA 25 Year Award
I have always felt the same about that particular house and I agree completely that it would not inspire the average person to hire an architect. Unfortunately this is a growing challenge. Interesting to note that when you open the article two ads pop up. One is from Pulte and the other from Centex which also do not inspire the average person to hire and architect.
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Lori Schneider AIA
Studio Blue Design, LLC
Boulder CO
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