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The Arts Intel Report

Frank Gehry: Ruminations

Frank Gehry, Untitled (Rust and Blue Fish), 2022.

Feb 8 – Apr 6, 2024
980 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10075

“The fish is a perfect form,” said the architect Frank Gehry in 2013, when he presented a new series of his “Fish Lamps.” Known for creating designs inspired by natural forms, Gehry has used the motif of fish in buildings such as the Guggenheim Bilbao (1997), Chicago’s Jay Pritzker Pavilion (2004), and the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi (opening in 2025). Gehry’s “Fish Lamp” sculpture series grew out of a 1983 commission from the Formica Corporation that tasked him to build something from their ColorCore plastic laminate. The exhibition “Ruminations” elaborates on that series. It also includes a “Crocodile Lamp” sculpture—yet another embodiment of Gehry’s interest in animals and organic elements—as well as rarely exhibited works on paper and a few small works in ink, watercolor, and acrylic on paper. —Jeanne Malle