With nine years and no strict financial budget, one would think that the architectural talents of Frank Gehry would lead to a grand creation. But the film “A Constructive Madness, in which Frank Gehry and Peter Lewis spend a fortune and a decade, end up with nothing and change the world” shows this may not be the case.
Jeff Kipnis, the Wexner Center’s interim chief curator of exhibitions and curator of architecture and design, wrote the movie, which deals with the “Lewis Residence” that was never built.
For several years Kipnis has studied the interaction between Gehry and Lewis, focusing on the architect’s design of the businessman’s house. He wrote the script two and a half years ago and has been collaborating with filmmakers Tom Ball and Brian Neff since then to create “Constructive Madness.”
“(Gehry) revolutionized the technology of architectural design and construction. He introduced and found a wide audience for a new architectural aesthetic,” Kipnis said.
In 1986, Lewis, who heads The Progressive Corporation in Cleveland, wanted a house built for him. Lewis enlisted Gehry after he presented a speech in Cleveland. Lewis had a budget in the range of $5 million, which was nothing new for Gehry, who was familiar with building residential homes.
The evolution of the project after Gehry was hired is what makes the topic interesting to Kipnis, who is a professor of architecture at the Knowlton School of Architecture. As Lewis allowed Gehry’s creativity to flourish, the price of the house increased and finally peaked at $80 million. This staggering price tag also inhibited Lewis from approving construction to begin, so the “Lewis Residence” was never created.
The “Lewis Residence” was the beginning of the architectural style now associated with Gehry. The model for his design is currently on display in the Cleveland Center for Contemporary Art.
Ball and Neff were filming the entire “Lewis Residence” project, which is how the film evolved. It follows Gehry’s work and evolution, as well as Lewis’ enthusiasm for the project.
Kipnis said the film contains riveting footage of Lewis and Gehry as well as the architectural and artistic development of Gehry’s work.
“The film is about how architecture serves as a cultural, i.e., an artform, over and above its everyday obligations, and how art itself serves to transform our lives,” Kipnis said.
Wexner Center’s spokesperson, Karen Simonian, said the film will not only appeal to architecture buffs.
“It should appeal to anyone who has been involved in some creative process,” she said.
The free screening will be shown at 7 p.m. tonight in Mershon Auditorium. The screening is presented by OSU’s Knowlton School of Architecture and the Wexner Center.
