Since its establishment, IstanbulSMD has been contributing to the architecture field in various ways. This year, on Tuesday, October 6, 2026, during Architecture Week, IstanbulSMD will once again organize a conference to commemorate the world-renowned architect Frank Gehry, whom we lost last year.
The event will take place at the Sedad Hakkı Eldem Auditorium at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University and will be open to all participants interested in the subject.
The event’s goal is to bring architects and architecture students together with distinguished professionals who are internationally recognized in their fields, offering new perspectives and opening up new horizons. The event will explore Frank Gehry’s many different attributes, with the aim of gaining a deeper understanding of his work and sharing his valuable legacy. It also aims to bring together members of the Federation of Associations of Architects in Private Practice, as well as academics in the field of architecture, representatives of firms operating in the sector, business professionals, and Istanbul residents with an interest in architecture. In doing so, the event wishes to create space for meaningful engagement and foster new opportunities for communication and collaboration.
The conference, titled “Frank Gehry – Illuminations,” will feature Edwin Chan, Lyndel King, and Thomas Mayer.
Edwin Chan is the founder of the Los Angeles-based architecture and design office EC3. Before founding EC3, Edwin was a Design Partner at Gehry Partners in Los Angeles from 1986 to 2012 where he played an instrumental role in developing the design vision for the firm’s most renowned projects, including the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, and the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris. Edwin holds a Bachelor of Arts from the College of Environmental Design at UC Berkeley and a Master of Architecture from the Graduate School of Design (GSD) at Harvard. He has taught at the Harvard GSD, University of Southern California, and UCLA; and was appointed the Howard Friedman Visiting Professor of Architectural Practice at the University of California at Berkeley in 2012. He has lectured in the US and internationally; and is an active participant in conferences and think tanks on arts and culture. Edwin has received many awards and distinctions, including the Wheelwright Prize from Harvard GSD, a grant from the Graham Foundation for the Arts, and the decoration of Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from the French Ministry of Culture.
Lyndel King (Former Director of the Weisman Art Museum) served as the Director and Chief Curator of the Frederick R. Weisman Art Museum in the United States for 40 years. She worked closely with Frank Gehry during the design and construction of the museum’s current building, collaborating with him on the transformation of the museum. She has also served on the boards of numerous foundations and museums both in the United States and internationally, as well as a consultant.
Thomas Mayer (Architectural Photographer) has worked as a freelance photographer in Germany since 1969. Between 1989 and 1999, he documented the entire development of the Neue Zollhof project in Düsseldorf, from the competition stage through to its completion. The publication of these photographs around the world established him as a recognized figure in the field of architectural photography. The same series of photographs also led to long-standing collaborations with numerous notable architects, including Frank Gehry. Listed among the 13 Best Architectural Photographers in the World, with an archive of more than 100,000 photographs, Mayer describes his work as “a form of photography that approaches design and life within design like a journalist, in the manner of an interview.”
The moderator, Architect Esra Aydınoğlu is the founder of Solo Design and Consultancy, where her practice focuses on passive building design, sustainable architecture, and energy efficiency. Her work explores the intersection of architecture, environmental responsibility, and evolving demographic needs. In response to changing patterns of habitation and demographics, she is currently developing a framework for the Turkish residential sector grounded in the principles of universal design, environmental sustainability, and social resilience.
As extension of the conference, Edwin Chan will meet with students at Aura Istanbul on Wednesday, October 7, 2026.
The event program can be accessed via this link.
