Rippling aluminium cladding creates distinctive exterior for California home

Formability of aluminium has made it the material of choice for the modern architects and engineers all over the world. With design concept of contemporary living gradually moving towards more 'fluid' from geometric shapes, the light metal is being favoured to create shapes and forms not seen before. Of late, Los Angeles based designer Mario Romano built a family home featuring an undulating aluminium exterior taking cues from the movement of the ocean. The Wave House is located in Venice, a beach town in the Los Angeles metropolitan area.

The residential property with its distinctive aluminium cladding is built on a sprawling 5,700 square feet (530 square metres) area. The home features fluid living spaces and wavy surfaces that symbolize the organic geometries found in nature.

On completion of the project, Romano said constructing the residence required "trust in the power of calculus and the development of an entirely new architectural vernacular." The designer essentially uses digital tools to create complex contemporary architectural forms.

Roman used over 300 white aluminium pieces for the exterior cladding. The aluminium clads were arranged to evoke a feeling of an ocean with swelling and crashing waves. The pieces are affixed to a metal substructure to ensure proper reinforcement. Thanks to the use of computer numeric controlled (CNC) technology and customised digital tools the lines could be created without repetitions or seams.

"Appearing as one massive undulating facade, the painted aluminium flows over two storeys until arriving to touch the ground in one single movement," said a visibly satisfied Romano.

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The unusual rippling character of the aluminium exterior is carried indoors as well, with textured surfaces being deployed in certain rooms to maintain parity and fluidity of space.

"Walls and floors are lyrical and like nature, without any repetition, bringing the landscape environment inside the home," said the designer.