Artist Hilla Rebay and philanthropist Solomon R. Guggenheim formed the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation in 1937.  It was created with the goal of spreading interest in avant-garde art through a series of museums.  The first such museum was the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in Manhattan. Originally the museum was known as the "Museum of Non-Objective Painting" and was not located where it is today. 

It wasn't until 1959 that the world-famous architect, Frank Lloyd Wright, completed a design for the Guggenheim's permanent residence at 89th Street and Fifth Avenue. With the completion of the building, it instantly became a major landmark in Manhattan as not just a building, but also a piece of artwork.  This idea of using marquee architects would be used in construction of the Guggenheim museums in Bilbao and Las Vegas.

Wright was criticized by some people, artists especially, for creating a museum environment that might take attention away from the art inside. He explained that both the building and artwork within would produce a beautiful symphony, one that has never existed in the World of Art before. The Guggenheim is absolutely Wright's most impressive pieces of work and most important building of his late career.