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Sketches of Frank Gehry by Sydney Pollack

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"Sketches of Frank Gehry" is director Sydney Pollack's first foray into documentary filmmaking, a personal quest to understand the work of his longtime friend, the Western world's most famous architect, Frank Gehry. Upon seeing Gehry's most famous work, the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, at its opening in 1997, Pollack asked himself, "Where did this come from?" A question in the minds of many who have been transfixed by the Bilbao's metallic curves that rise organically from the Earth while they ironically convey otherworldliness. Pollack approaches the film with a layman's understanding of architecture and an intense desire to understand why and how Frank Gehry creates as he does. Gehry is at ease with his friend and speaks freely of his background, his career, and his ambition. Pollack was apprehensive about placing himself in the film, but his presence personalizes the exercise and introduces a dialogue between these 2 men who both "try to find personal expressiveness within disciplines that make stringent commercial demands".

The greatest insight into Gehry's creative process and the evolution of his styles comes from Gehry himself. But clients, artists, writers, museum curators, Gehry's design partners, and his psychoanalyst Milton Wexler all contribute their perspectives on the man and his work. We see some works in progress and briefly tour some of Gehry's buildings: private residences, museums, and commercial buildings. The only Frank Gehry detractor who agreed to participate in the film is Hal Foster, Princeton University Professor of Art & Architecture. I would have liked to hear more dissenting opinion -or more balanced opinion- since the praise of Gehry's work becomes repetitive. Foster articulates only some of Gehry's weaknesses. Frank Gehry works very well with light, and his best buildings have lines that are utterly symphonic. But he has persistent aesthetic and practical shortcomings. In any case, "Sketches of Frank Gehry" is an inviting, insightful documentary that gives an impression of transparency, to match Gehry's buildings.

The DVD (Sony Pictures 2006): There is a "Q&A with Sydney Pollack" (34 min) from the Los Angeles premiere of the film. Pollack discusses how he approached the subject of Frank Gehry's work, being neither a documentarian or an architecture buff, but a layperson trying to understand the mind behind the buildings. He talks about the process of making the film and his intention to make a documentary that relates in style to traditional documentaries as Gehry's architecture relates to traditional architecture. And he takes some questions from the audience. Subtitles for the film are available in French.

Ironically Sydney Pollack's warm, intelligent portrait of his longtime friend, architect Frank Gehry, is probably the best film he's made in years. Casually recording Gehry at work and while driving, and outside the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles while it is still under construction, Pollack has made an intimate documentary of an architect who over the years has revolutionized how we see buildings, steadily redefining our relationship between space and light.

From the outset it becomes pretty obvious that Gehry has never let professional limitations get to him and he's notoriously rejected much of the artistic conservatism of the past. Consequently, he's created architectural designs that just don't conform to the normal, predictable rules of geometry.

Obviously whether you like his work is a matter of taste - I find a lot of his work rather cold and ugly - but it is absolutely fascinating to watch his metamorphosis take place, from the design stage, where his ideas originate as doodles on paper and assemblages of cardboard and tape, to their transformation into models and then the finished product.

Of course the final test comes when they are molded into glass and titanium, and we finally get to see the end result of Gehry's vision. At barely ninety minutes, Pollack seems intent to cram a lot into his film: We get interviews with patrons, admirers and friends, including Bob Geldoff, the former Disney executives Michael D. Eisner and Michael S. Ovitz the Guggenheim chief Thomas Krens and Herbert Muschamp, the former architecture critic of The New York Times.

Perhaps most interesting are the graphic shorts of Gehry's most crowning achievements. Along with the Walt Disney Concert Hall, there's the Disney Ice rink in Anaheim and of course, the Guggenheim Museum of Bilbao that towers majestically above the city.

Not all critics are favorable; Pollack also interviews Hal Foster, an art critic and Princeton professor, who is far more critical of Mr. Gehry's reputation, and of the kind of "cultural branding," and the propensity towards architectural trendiness that his fame represents. But Gehry is always affable if not a little bit crusty and is more than willing to listen and take note of his potential detractors.

This movie, for the most part does a good job of balancing exploration of his personality with admiration of his work. As expected, it's Gehry who is probably the most frank and harshly candid observer of his work. And he even admits that it takes him at least a year to let go of a lot of his work once it is finished.

In the end, what we get is a fascinating portrait of a visual genius, a hardworking and refreshingly unpretentious man who has devoted his life to obtaining creative freedom through is work. Mike Leonard September 06.

Even though I have since seen the Experience Music Project in Seattle and the Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago, I was first taken by Frank Gehry's work when I accidentally came upon the eye-catching "Fred and Ginger" building in Prague in 1999, an eccentric juxtaposition of a cylindrical concrete building and a free-flowing glass tower that does indeed look like the classic dancing pair. Director Sydney Pollack has taken time out of his commercial filmmaking to make a mostly winning documentary about his close friend, the world-renowned architect. It's a warm and low-key look at Gehry's creative process which obviously parallels Pollack's own. In fact, the film is structured as an intimate conversation between the two and the joy of the film comes from the unexpected revelations that only happen between friends, in particular, how Gehry broke with tradition at an early age to design wildly original buildings that people either abhor or revere.

With a relative minimum of his own narcissism, Pollack is able to convey Gehry as a curious mix of self-effacing outsider and proud non-conformist and uses not only Gehry's own musings but the perspectives of others to provide evidence of both sides of the man. Not too surprisingly, Gehry's long-time therapist Milton Wexler provides the most perceptive comments about his patient's internal creative struggles, but there are also insightful remarks from Gehry's colleague, the late Philip Johnson; Herbert Muschamp of the New York Times; and architecture critic Hal Foster, the only one to offer a dissenting view of Gehry's work.

Unfortunately, in an attempt to broaden the audience for his film, Pollack has also included several celebrities, whose opinions about Gehry border on the banal, for example, film industry heavyweights Michael Ovitz, Michael Eisner and Barry Diller; Dennis Hopper who lives in a Gehry-designed house; and Bob Geldof who just happened upon the Gehry-designed Vitra Design Museum while on tour. Director Julian Schnabel provides some funny moments as he shows up in a bathrobe, sunglasses and with a brandy snifter, especially as he talks about the audacity of Gehry's work and makes a classic analogy with Robert Duvall's performance in "Apocalypse Now".

However, the best moments are Gehry at work with his design partners Craig Webb and Edwin Chan, as they innocently start designs with construction paper and a pair of scissors. Pollack's cinematic skills come into play when he showcases the designs of Gehry's most famous buildings, the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, the Walt Disney Concert Hall in LA and the DG Bank Building in Berlin. With long takes and compositions set against adjacent buildings, we can appreciate what Gehry was trying to achieve in making his designs compatible with the environs. Instead of the montage provided in the film, a more comprehensive and annotated image catalogue of his work would have been more helpful in order to understand the changes in Gehry's designs as his career progressed. Other than previews for several recent documentaries, the only extra on the 2006 DVD is an illuminating half-hour Q&A session with Pollack moderated by director Alexander Payne.

There simply is no more controversial architect in the world today than Frank Gehry and people have very strong opinions about his work. He has both his passionate lovers and haters. I am one of the very few who is somewhat in the middle. I really love some of his work, while I find some of his work to be quite off putting. The person in the film who probably got it better than anyone is a sympathizer of Gehry's work, art critic Claude Jencks (the person who popularized the term "postmodern"). Jencks, for whose deceased wife Gehry designed a memorial building, states bluntly that Gehry has made some ugly buildings. I think with Gehry more than most architects, one must give oneself the freedom to hate or love his individual buildings without inhibition. Whatever else one may say about Gehry, he isn't like other architects.

One reviewer below called this a "puff piece," but that isn't really correct. It is more correct to call it a conversation with a friend. Gehry asked his close friend, the mainstream director Sydney Pollack, to make a documentary of his work. The result is a fine portrait of Gehry's career. Pollack certainly does not criticize his work, but interestingly he does not over praise it either. They do call attention to the fact that many simply don't like his work and the film contains numerous excerpts from one of Gehry's more vociferous and respected critics, Hal Foster. But the point of the film is not to provide an objective and critical overview of Frank Gehry's work. The point is to get to know Frank Gehry and some of his ideas about architecture. In this the film succeeds marvelously.

If one watches a number of documentaries about architects, one thing that is striking is how many of them are enormously likable individuals. For every irascible Frank Lloyd Wright there are ten you'd love to sit down and have a beer with. Much like I. M. Pei, Frank Gehry comes across as an immensely likable guy in this film. Perhaps away from his friend's camera he is an implacable tyrant, but those qualities, if they exist, are not apparent here. Instead, he comes across as a genuinely nice guy. In fact, a couple of the individuals interviewed stress that as laid back as Gehry is, he really does have an ego. I don't think I've ever heard a person in the creative field have anyone insist that appearance aside, they really do have an ego. In the vast majority of cases, that is all too apparent.

I found it interesting to see the shots of Gehry and either of his design partners working with him on designs. If you are accustomed to think of architecture as akin to drafting, watching Gehry work is a bit of a shock. He doesn't design so much as sculpt. He and his partners look like a couple of extremely mature kindergartners with scissors and paper as they cut, bend, shape, snip, and play with variations on the model they are struggling with. There is apparently little or no concern with the particular materials to be used. He seems rather to struggle with the kind of overall shape, with the assumption that with today's materials any kind of design can be turned into a reality. The film really brings out how Gehry's own conception of architecture is much closer to sculpture than to engineering.

As a resident of Chicago, a city noted for his importance to twentieth century architecture, it has been amazing to realize how little of his work has been done here. In fact, apart from his controversial (what else?) work in Millennium Park, I'm not aware of anything else he has done here. As a result, I have less direct experience with Gehry's work than many other leading architects. I must confess that much of what I see appears to be fascinating. I would, for instance, absolutely love to see his Bilbao museum. But there is one aspect to Gehry's work that I really applaud: its emphasis on individualism. One criticism of much architecture has been its essential conservativism. Much of it espouses nonegalitarian and conformist values. One sees exceptions, such as Louis Sullivan's refusal to put box seats in his Chicago Auditorium design. If one looks at a Gehry design, it is hard to imagine it ever becoming the style of choice of a repressionistic, totalitarian regime. It is too individualistic, too anarchic for that. Even such a free spirit as Louis Kahn still designed the capitol of Bangladesh. But it is simply impossible to imagine Frank Gehry designing a capitol.

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. I came away from it with a greater liking for Frank Gehry as a person than I had anticipated. And perhaps I will in the future be more inclined to appreciate his designs. He may not be the greatest of our architects, but he certainly is one of our more likable free spirits.

How can one rate what is essentially a conversation between friends? Mr. Gehry's creativity, personality, and individuality are brilliantly portrayed in this film. I feel closer to understanding Gehry as an architect and as a person. Thank you Mr. Gehry and Mr. Pollack for pursuing your passions and sharing them with us in this delightful yet involving piece. I am compelled to visit/view more of your works.

Sketches of Frank Gehry has a simple goal and is very open about it. It is a conversation between friends who over the years have gained respect for each other and learned from each other.

This isn't a biography. This isn't an insightful exploration of architectural history.

It is a movie about an artist who has found a canvas for his work and the ability to now explore without restraint his artistic vision. The canvas is space itself, explored through architecture.

As such it's more a movie about the artistic process and the artistic soul. We don't learn many details about either Gehry or the science. We do learn about the spirit of a man who really does see the world as more open than most of us, and who wants to change it through a particular medium. As a movie about art it reminds me of Rivers and Tides, though not as lyrical.

Sketches of Frank Gehry is interesting and inspirational, brilliant and simple. A wonderful movie in its simplicity, as long as you are willing to accept it for what it is -- a conversation between masters we are privileged to overhear.

As an architect myself I found this DVD to provide a fascinating behind the scenes look at the creative process of one of the preeminant architects of our time. Sydney Pollack's layman approach to direction with hand-held camera work and one-on-one interviews gives a skillful perspective that demystifies Frank Gehry's growth as an architect. Gehry's early work at Vitra to the celebrated Museum in Bilbao Spain (which many have compared on equal footing with Frank Lloyd Wright's Falling Water house as the greatest commercial piece of architecture in the last 100 years ) are all celebrated here with plenty of video documentation. It is very clear early on in this documentary that Sydney Pollack was the right choice for the job of documenting Frank's ascension as one of the top designers practicing today. Sydney's friendship with Gehry clearly shows through and keeps Gehry's guard down so that we all benefit from this deeply personal look at how Gehry's early personal life struggles give way to a steely determination to become an architect and designer at the highest level of his trade. HIs firm's unique use of model making and computer generated explorations of each design are highlighted as they move from Frank's scribbled sketches to ultimate construction to stand the tests of time. I couldn't recommend this DVD higher !

Before Sydney Pollack left us I watched Charlie Rose interview him about this documentary. It's not about Pollack's film work but his creative and honest relationship with Gehry-an artist reflecting the artist-that is wonderful.

Having visited many of Frank Lloyd Wright's work in northern Illinois and now living in a Pacific NW city also blessed with outstanding architects, I've a respect and love for the work of Gehry. The depth allowed shows a master's processes both amazingly collaborative and child-like. It brings back Wright's recollections of playing with blocks as art born from simplicity. Frank has the advantage now of Computer Aided Design although his fascination with fish matches Wright's past.

Bilboa is awesome but a venture into the Seattle Experience work would've been welcome too. So it goes.

You will enjoy this piece of art.

I believe Syd Pollack is the premier moviemaker of my generation. I believe Frank Gehry is one of the Top 3 architects of this period. My interest in architecture/film led me to see this documentary more for the Pollack influence than for Gehry. But, I also have a very close friend who is friends with the Pollack's AND had a relationship with Gehry on previous boards in the 80s. AND, his art collection includes a "fish lamp" in his living room. Spellbound by the story of being offered over $100,000 for this, this, LAMP, I felt it was time to explore Gehry's work in more depth, a two for one.

This DVD is not for commercial sucess, it is a labor of love between two friends. Pollack has no reason to do this other than a love and appreciation for another artist. And Gehry has no reason to be so forthcoming and delve back into his life except to satisfy his friend. So what this becomes is just an open discussion between friends centered around architecture and career.

I must now admit that I am not a large fan of Gehry's architecture. It is too abstract for me. I prefer balance and clean lines and Gehry is about creation and a unique thought process. But I can appreciate the artistry even if it is not my favorite artwork.

This is an important DVD and should be watched as it is a reflection of American artistry from 1960 forward by two masters. But more so, two years later, due to the passing of Syd Pollack, a true legend of a film director. So I am touched and grateful for having watched this shortly before Pollack's death and having also sent this DVD to two other friends to watch and discuss and enjoy the work of Gehry. But also for one more reason: Gehry late in the DVD describes his fascination with the body of a fish and Pollack flashes pictures of the many buildings with unique structure which you can now clearly see are designed like a fish. But it all started with an unattractive lamp......

I never thought a documentary about architecture could be so fascinating. Sydney Pollack does an excellent job of delving into Frank Gehry's techniques and the controversy over his buildings. More interesting than you might imagine.