Gehry's stylish Opus to be a 'good neighbour'
Acclaimed architect Frank Gehry says his first residential building in Asia, completed in Hong Kong yesterday, was designed to be 'a good neighbour' to the rest of the city.
Gehry, best known for constructions such as the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, was at the Opus Hong Kong in Stubbs Road, Mid-Levels, yesterday to see his latest work in its finished form. The 12-storey building has a flat on each floor. With a shape influenced by the bauhinia flower, the building twists as it rises, giving each flat a different view over the city.
'The idea was to make each floor a single apartment. I want to give each ... [flat] a personality,' Gehry said.
'My idea was to maximise the assets of the land, making it a good neighbour to the rest of Hong Kong, not something sticking out from the hill. That would be horrible.'
The Canadian architect, 83, showed pictures of models he built and the toy-like blocks he used to design the building.
He also displayed the squiggly drawings he uses to find inspiration.
The building's owner, Swire Properties, intends to keep the block and rent out each flat.
Chief executive Martin Cubbon said when Gehry's services were enlisted in 2009 that the building could set new records for rental in the city.
