To some it is a glistening, cubist masterpiece. To others it resembles an exploding tin can. Either way, Frank Gehry's latest work has provoked heated debate.

As the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles filled up with champagne-sipping celebrities earlier this week, many hailed it as an architectural jewel.

Back in Sussex, Gehry's newest offering was being condemned as a "a cacophony of twisted metal."

Ken Fines, a former borough planning officer for Brighton and founder of Heritage Over Vandalism, Actually, said the hall belonged in Disneyland rather than downtown LA.

But the unveiling of the LA theatre, nicknamed the sparkling artichoke, has caused further unease about his plans for Hove.

Gehry's vision for futuristic skyscrapers at the King Alfred site on Hove seafront has already won backing from Brighton and Hove City Council.

But many think they do not sit comfortably among the Regency squares and elegant terraces of Hove.

Mr Fines said: "The Hove site is surrounded by three conservation areas.

"It is not a downtown area that needs reviving. And we already have a building that compares with the Eiffel Tower, the Sydney Opera House and the Houses of Parliament - the Royal Pavilion."

Canadian-born Gehry, 74, says his vision for the King Alfred site came about after he walked along Hove seafront on a blowy day.

He declared: "What we need are five beautiful women, five madonnas." (He later decided five was a crowd and reduced the number to four.)

At 38 storeys and almost 450ft high, the tallest of the towers would be the highest building in the city.

The design would contain 438 flats, including a significant proportion of low-cost housing, a high-level public viewing platform and a restaurant. Beneath the towers would be a £26m public sports centre.

Each tower has giant glass panels and a distinctive crumpled look.

They were instantly named tin can towers and compared to four giant transvestites in a gale.

While Gehry suggested the towers be called the four maidens, Mr Fines suggested four lager louts was more appropriate.

The council invited bids from rival architects after it realised it was unable to find £25m for a new sports centre.

Gehry, who also designed the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, presented his bid in partnership with Karis Developments and Dutch finance group ING.

As soon as the plans were unveiled, residents organised a petition against the development and collected more than 400 signatures.

But in July, the council chose the Karis/ING bid as its preferred developer.

A study showed the Karis plans would inject the most money into the local economy - between £25m and £32m.

A formal planning application is unlikely to be submitted before next year and it will be up to six years before the towers are completed.