IN-PERSON ISTANBUL HERITAGE(S)
Abstract
Frank Owen Gehry (1929 – 2025) rose to prominence in the 1970s and 80s. Throughout his career, he received numerous awards and honors, including the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 1989, the AIA Gold Medal in 1999, J. Paul Getty Medal in the 2015 as well as the National Medal of Arts and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in the United States. Gehry described architecture as inherently sculptural, asserting, “I always thought that architecture was, by definition, a three-dimensional object, therefore sculpture”. His design process had been influenced by diverse factors including the medieval sculptor Claus Sluter, drapery, the movement of fish in water, sails and more. Gehry frequently used to point out that buildings needed façades and emphasized that after solving the structural and functional aspects of a building comes the “moment of truth” or in his terms, the “what then effect”. Hence buildings or structures for Gehry were all unique and the principle of searching for sculptural uniqueness carried over into his other designs such as chairs, lamps, jewelry, an organ or even a chess set. Reflecting on this design process and the work of Frank Gehry, this keynote refocuses on one of the most important architects of recent times.
Prof. Dr. Filiz Özer graduated from Robert College in Istanbul and received her BA in History from Vassar College. She completed her graduate studies and PhD in the Department of Classical Archaeology at Istanbul University. She was awarded the title of Associate Professor with a thesis on the impact of the past on contemporary architecture, and later became a Full Professor at Istanbul Technical University, where she taught undergraduate and graduate courses in the history of art and architecture. In 1985, she received an International Visitor Grant from the United States Department of State. She currently teaches graduate courses at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University, Faculty of Architecture, and has published widely in both Turkish and English. Prof. Dr. Özer has delivered lectures at institutions and museums in Turkey and internationally, and has served on the organizing committees of numerous national and international symposia. Her research focuses on contemporary architecture and design, as well as the history of Ottoman architecture. She has collaborated with and published articles on Frank Gehry.
9:30 am - 10:30 am
Monday 6th July, 2026