Architectural Cases

From June 12 to December 20, 2026, the Serralves Museum of Contemporary Art in Porto, Portugal, will host a major exhibition celebrating the distinguished career of the renowned architect Frank Gehry (1929-2025). Titled “The Century of Gehry,” this retrospective provides an in-depth look at his influential and sometimes provocative postmodern architectural style. Visitors will encounter original large-scale models, artistic creations, architectural plans, distinctive furniture pieces, and other significant works that chronicle Gehry's extensive career, from his initial explorations to his iconic projects.

Among the highlighted works are his personal residence in Santa Monica, California, the globally recognized Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris, France, and the majestic Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, California. The exhibition is situated within the Serralves Museum, a building originally designed by the acclaimed Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza Vieira in 1991, with the current display taking place in the recently opened wing bearing Siza’s name.

Curated by António Choupina, the Director of Architecture at the Serralves Foundation, in collaboration with Gehry Partners and the Getty Research Institute, the exhibition is structured into eight thematic sections. These sections are designed to illuminate architecture as a dynamic and deeply human endeavor, characterized by practicality, imagination, and a blend of creativity, emotion, and poetic expression. The display also explores Gehry's artistic exchanges with other architects and artists, notably Álvaro Siza, with whom he collaborated on the master plan for the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena.

The selected pieces underscore Gehry’s unique ability to merge sculpture with architecture, defying conventional boundaries between gravity and fluidity, and intertwining memory with futuristic vision. The exhibition draws from extensive archives, featuring original drawings, sketches, models, photographs, and documents sourced from Gehry Partners and the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles. A notable inclusion is an original model of the Gehry Residence, on loan from the MAK – Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna, offering a rare glimpse into the architect's creative process.

The curator, António Choupina, emphasized Gehry's transformative influence, stating that his contributions marked a pivotal shift in contemporary architecture, redefining how the profession is understood and practiced. Choupina highlighted Gehry's ability to simultaneously push architecture into the future while drawing inspiration from historical contexts, where art and architecture were intrinsically linked. He also acknowledged Gehry’s collaborative spirit, noting his interactions with a diverse community of artists and friends, including his profound connection with Álvaro Siza, whose new wing now fittingly celebrates Gehry’s remarkable legacy.

Throughout its duration, the exhibition will feature 19 projects located in various cities worldwide, including Bilbao, Toronto, Paris, and Los Angeles. These projects exemplify Gehry's groundbreaking approach to form, materials, and structural design. Key works on display encompass his Santa Monica Residence, the innovative Cardboard Furniture Series, the Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, and the distinctive Chiat/Day Building in Venice, Los Angeles. Other significant projects include the Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein, the Lewis Residence in Lyndhurst, the iconic Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. Further exhibits include the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, Parque Mayer in Lisbon, the Ferreira de Sá Rug, the Neuer Zollhof in Düsseldorf, the DZ Bank in Berlin, the Marqués de Riscal in Elciego, the Dr Chau Chak Building (UTS) in Sydney, the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris, LUMA in Arles, the Beekman Tower / 8 Spruce in New York, and Forma at King Street in Toronto.

The Serralves Museum itself, commissioned to Álvaro Siza in 1991 and opened in 1999 with the exhibition “Circa 1968,” recently expanded with a new 45,000-square-foot Álvaro Siza Wing in 2024. This expansion, connected to the main building by an elevated gallery and a first-floor passage, effectively doubles the museum's exhibition space. The new wing dedicates two floors to contemporary art and architecture exhibitions and houses the Serralves archives, allowing for a diverse program of both permanent collection displays and temporary architectural showcases.

Álvaro Siza, the architect of the museum and a 1992 Pritzker Prize laureate, shared his admiration for Gehry, describing his work as a joyful endeavor that fused novelty with ancient traditions, embodying uniqueness, natural elements, and essential qualities. Siza noted that Gehry’s profound impact gradually transformed the landscape of architectural history, expressing regret at Gehry’s absence but acknowledging that his legacy would permeate every room of the museum and every street of the city. The exhibition offers an unparalleled opportunity to explore the enduring genius of Frank Gehry and his pivotal role in shaping the modern architectural discourse.

Architectural designs, while initially conceived by experts, rarely maintain their static form. Over decades, buildings undergo transformations driven by the evolving needs of their occupants. The original blueprint often diverges significantly from the lived reality as families expand, technologies advance, and new enterprises emerge. These structures accumulate numerous alterations, repairs, and enhancements, slowly distancing them from their initial state and highlighting the dynamic interplay between design intent and user adaptation.

The PREVI Lima project serves as a compelling illustration of this phenomenon. Established in the late 1960s as Peru's pioneering Experimental Housing Project, PREVI brought together an international cohort of esteemed architects to conceptualize housing units capable of evolving over time. Figures such as James Stirling, Aldo van Eyck, and Christopher Alexander contributed to its ambitious design. More than five decades on, the neighborhood stands as a living record of resident-initiated changes, showcasing architecture that was intentionally left open to future modifications.

The Evolution of Architectural Intent and Occupant Adaptation

Architects typically receive credit for their creations, with their names inextricably linked to projects through various media for extended periods. However, the reality of a building's life diverges considerably from its initial conception. As residents settle in, their needs shift, technologies improve, and new economic activities arise, leading to unforeseen demands on the built environment. This constant flux necessitates modifications, repairs, and extensions, gradually transforming the architecture and creating a unique narrative shaped by its inhabitants.

Buildings are not static entities but living spaces that continuously adapt to the changing lifestyles of their occupants. The original designs, while foundational, serve as starting points for a process of ongoing evolution. Over time, residents make personalizations, add extensions, and implement repairs that reflect their evolving circumstances. This organic process often results in structures that bear little resemblance to their initial plans, underscoring the critical role of resident authorship in shaping the built environment. This ongoing adaptation highlights the dynamic and responsive nature of architecture when confronted with real-world needs and individual agency.

PREVI Lima: A Paradigm of Resident-Driven Design

The PREVI Lima initiative uniquely explores the concept of resident-driven architectural evolution. Established in the late 1960s as an experimental housing venture in Peru, the project aimed to develop adaptable housing prototypes. It drew contributions from internationally recognized architects including James Stirling, Aldo van Eyck, and Christopher Alexander, all of whom sought to integrate flexibility into their designs. The vision was to create homes that could grow and change with their occupants, rather than imposing a fixed, immutable form.

Over fifty years have passed since PREVI Lima's inception, and the neighborhood has become a tangible testament to the power of resident autonomy in shaping urban spaces. The initial architectural frameworks have been continuously modified, expanded, and personalized by the inhabitants, reflecting their diverse needs and preferences. This ongoing process of improvisation and adaptation demonstrates how a housing project designed to be 'unfinished' can foster a vibrant, responsive environment, where residents become co-creators of their living spaces, constantly reinterpreting and enriching the original architectural vision.