University of Southern California is 81-year-old’s second professorship

Frank Gehry has been appointed Judge Widney Professor of Architecture by the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, a post named after the founder of the private institution.

The architect of the city’s Walt Disney Concert Hall as well as the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, and the forthcoming business school in Sydney, graduated from the university with a BA in architecture in 1954.

The Pritzker Prize winner is already a professor at Columbia University in New York.

“I am very honored to be given this prestigious appointment,” Gehry said. “USC was an important part of my early life. When I was a USC student, my professors gave me excellent preparation for my career. I carry with me today many life lessons learned at ’SC.”

Qingyun Ma, dean of the USC School of Architecture, said: “Frank Gehry is arguably one of the most innovative designers in history, integrating design, art and community in such unique, pioneering ways. He acts as an alchemist — every city touched by his architecture is touched by his creative power.”