Architect saves artistic flair for his building designs

A massive sand box called Saadiyat Island marks the spot where Abu Dhabi's cultural renaissance will begin.

Architect Frank Gehry speaks in front of members of TDIC about his design for the new Guggenheim.

ABU DHABI // It may not be much to look at now, but this massive sand box called Saadiyat Island marks the spot where Abu Dhabi's cultural renaissance will begin. "Right here," says Lee Tabler, chief executive of the Abu Dhabi's Tourism Development and Investment Company, pointing to the aquamarine ocean from the beach, "is where the Guggenheim will be. This is the site." Mr Tabler and TDIC colleagues have stepped from white SUVs to show the renowned architect Frank Gehry where, precisely, his museum will sit. In the capital to present TDIC with design updates for the Guggenheim satellite, Mr Gehry's tour of the yet undeveloped Saadiyat is just one stop on a busy Abu Dhabi visit. Having designed buildings for longer than Abu Dhabi has had paved roads, Mr Gehry does not appear unduly interested in the fuss his presence creates ; celebrity status and photo opportunities hold little interest for him. Mr Gehry may be almost 80, jet lagged and tired, but it is obvious that what he cares about most is his building. It resembles a play area a child has just abandoned. There is a series of blocks, each stacked on top of another. Giant cone shapes lean against other parts of the building. The museum, set to hold one of the most diverse art collections in the region, is itself art. Each block will house a gallery, some permanent, some temporary. An architecture and design centre will be found at one end of the museum, which will also have a library and archive, an education centre, terraces and a gallery dedicated to Arab and Middle Eastern culture. This is Mr Gehry's second Guggenheim, having designed a Spanish satellite in Bilbao in 1997. The success of that project, the most significant in a citywide urban renewal scheme, was so spectacular that it inspired the term "Bilbao Effect". Some of his projects have been criticised for consisting of largely non-functional forms, or for not always reflecting the city in which they are built. However, one of his most recently completed buildings - a renovation of the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, the city where Mr Gehry was born and raised - is widely seen, two months after its opening, as a success. Architecture critics have highlighted the architect's ability to connect each side of the building to the existing urban fabric. Mr Gehry moved to California in 1947, where he continues to live and work. Despite his dual citizenship, he has clung to a Canadian sense of modesty. This is no small feat for someone who began the trend of "starchitects"; he is one of only a few who made the trade sexy. But his appearance and demeanour are in stark contrast to the ideas that take shape in his mind. Unlike others of the breed such as the controversial Dutch designer Rem Koolhaas or the black-clad Daniel Libeskind, Mr Gehry has never felt the need to display creativity or originality in the clothes or glasses he chooses. He is no fashionista, his hair is white, he speaks slowly. He is unaffected and earnest, a man who can truly be defined by what he does. [e-mail]