Richard Meier

Richard Meier got married to architect Katherine Gormley but the couple got divorced later.

The couple had two children together - Ana Meier and Joseph Meier.

He was born on October 12, 1934 in Newark, New Jersey, in a Jewish family to Jerome Meier and Carolyn Kaltenbacher as the eldest of their three sons.

Architect and theorist Peter Eisenman is his second cousin who is also a member of the ‘New York Five’.

He was raised in nearby suburban township of Maplewood where he studied at the ‘Columbia High School’.

In 1957 he completed his ‘Bachelor in Architecture’ from ‘Cornell University’ in Ithaca, New York and thereafter toured many countries including Germany, Italy, France, Greece, Denmark and Israel in pursuit of developing network with fellow architects.

In 1959, while touring Europe, he tried to get a job in the office of his early inspiration Le Corbusier, the renowned Swiss-French architect, and also met Corbusier in Paris, but since Corbusier would not hire any American, he was rejected.

He returned to New York and joined Skidmore, Owings and Merrill in 1959, where he worked for a while. Thereafter he worked for three years with Marcel Breuer, a ‘Bauhaus’ educated modernist architect who was a protégé and ex-partner of Walter Gropius.

While he worked as an architect during the day time, at night he used to delve into abstract expressionist paintings. He also shared a studio with painter Frank Stella, one of his close friends. However later he had to dedicate more time to architecture and could occasionally work on collages.

In 1963, he set up his own office in New York. He also started teaching at ‘Cooper Union’, which he continued till 1973. He also remained a visiting critic at many institutions.

Two of his earlier works that got him critical acclaim and significant attention are the ‘Smith House’ (1965–67) in Darien, Connecticut and ‘Douglas House’ in Harbor Springs, Michigan (1971-73). While the former is first white building, the latter is a quintessential illustration of his style of work.

His major work remains the ‘Getty Center’ in Los Angeles in which he was involved for over a decade from 1985 to 1997. The multi-purpose compound consists of six main buildings including ‘Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities’, ‘Getty Conservation Institute’, public galleries and private study rooms. The project gave him scope to delve into the contrasting private and public spheres simultaneously, keeping a balance between the two.

The effects of lights were best explored by him at the ‘Getty Centre’, which has been constructed with honey-coloured travertine and is positioned in the hills of Los Angeles. The designs of the compound reflect inclination towards Classical architecture. Today it has become one of the most popular tourist spots in Los Angeles.