The board of the 11th annual prestigious art and architecture showcase said the 79-year-old will receive a career achievement award for his architectural accomplishments, which include the Guggenheim Museum in the Spanish city of Bilbao, the Italian news agency ANSA reported.

Biennale Director Aaron Betsky said Gehry, who also designed the Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, would be recognized at the "Out There: Architecture Beyond Building" event.

''Frank Gehry transformed modern architecture,'' said Betsky.

''He freed it from the confines of the 'box' and the limits of common building practices."

''As experimental as the artistic practices that inspired it, Gehry's architecture is the true modern model for an architecture that goes beyond building."