All dolled up with a place to go, Saturday night was a perfect spring evening in the city.  I headed to Upper East Side where the Guggenheim opened its doors for its 50th anniversary celebration with a retrospective of the museum’s architect, Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward.

Fifty years after the completion of the Guggenheim Museum’s renowned swirly building, it seemed appropriate that the golden anniversary should celebrate the architect known for redefining the meaning of space and how a building harmonizes with its surroundings.

Among a smattering of art docent and socialite types, Wright’s personal renderings, blueprints and models were the stars of the show. His career spanned a prolific 72 years with 1,141 works — “including houses, offices, churches, schools, libraries, bridges, museums, and many other building types.” Of that number, he completed 532 works.  Makes one wonder how this world would have been more beautifully designed if the other 532 works–which included buildings for Iraq– had been completed.

Marin County Civic Center San Rafael, California, 1957–62 Main entrance of administration building Photograph by Ezra Stoller © Esto

Crowds lined up at the opening of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, October 21, 1959 Photograph by Robert E. Mates © The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum New York, 1943–59 Exterior view © The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York