The Bob Hope House is one of renowned architect John Lautner’s lesser-known residential builds, but nonetheless striking with its bold, futuristic form against the desert landscape of Palm Springs, California.

Designed in 1973 for actor Bob Hope and his wife Dolores, who commissioned Lautner due to their admiration for the Elrod House nearby on Southridge Drive; the modernist residence spans 23,600 sq ft, with a colossal undulating triangular roof, often likened to a volcano, a mushroom, or even a spaceship.

With a large central light shaft in the roof, the grounds of the house include an outdoor fireplace in a large conical chimney, a tennis court, and a swimming pool shaped like Hope’s profile.

Don't miss: How landscape designer John Sharp achieves ethereal outdoor spaces for historic residences

Nicolas Ghesquière, artistic director of Louis Vuitton’s women’s collection, was already captivated by the desert city’s beauty when he first visited Palm Springs 15 years prior.

Lautner’s technical prowess in creating a dialogue between the built environment and the natural world came to inspire his Cruise 2016 collection. Exuding a futuristic yet bohemian spirit, it was dominated by long, fluid hemlines that juxtaposed against the sweeping views of the Coachella Valley and San Jacinto Mountains.

Read more: In Pictures: Louis Vuitton opens its largest flagship store in Pavilion KL

Perched on the cliffs of Théoule-sur-Mer, France overlooking the Mediterranean, the Palais Bulles defies conventional design with its interconnected spherical modules, earning it the moniker “Bubble Palace.”

Designed by Hungarian architect Antti Lovag in the 1970s, and later acquired by Pierre Cardin, the then primary tailor for Maison Christian Dior, the structure’s fluid, bubble-like forms seem to emerge organically from the landscape, challenging the notion of traditional living spaces. 

Lovag’s aversion to straight lines, which he considered “an aggression against nature,” is evident in every curve and contour of the 1,200-sqm residence. The absence of right angles challenges traditional spatial segmentation, with curvilinear walls and domed ceilings creating open, fluid interiors bathed in natural light through massive apertures that frame spectacular sea views.

See also: Step inside these 5 renovated Parisian homes with stunning interiors

Palais Bulles hosted the Dior Cruise 2016 show, curated by Raf Simons. The collection, inspired by the colours and allure of the French Riviera, found a perfect complement in the palace’s architectural audacity. 

Simons noted the structure’s representation of “individuality and lightness,” echoing the ethos of his designs–an explosion of playfulness, freedom and individuality but kept down to earth with structured, almost architectural shapes.

Don't miss: Model behaviour: Alicia Amin on choosing authenticity over popularity

Completed in 2014, the Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) in Seoul, South Korea is a neofuturistic landmark that embodies a bold departure from traditional design principles, showcasing visionary architect Zaha Hadid’s signature style of fluid, organic forms that seem to defy gravity.

Inspired by the 2004 Pritzker Prize laureate’s concept of “metonymic landscape”–an integration of Seoul’s various cultural and urban aspects into a single, flowing structure; the DDP’s exterior features seamless aluminium panels, creating a continuous, curvilinear surface that eschew right angles, favouring smooth transitions between walls, floors, and ceilings.

Read more: Zaha Hadid Architects unveils first Malaysian project: Sustainable design for Discovery City in Johor

The DDP’s futuristic aesthetic has made it a natural choice for hosting Karl Lagerfeld’s Chanel Resort 2016 show, featuring a striking palette inspired by the K-pop phenomenon. 

Furthermore, the DDP has been the venue for Seoul Fashion Week since 2022, with its curation of talented Korean designers like Choonmoo Park, whose fashion brand Demoo highlights contemporary looks inspired by the traditional hanbok.

See also: 5 iconic Dior looks that changed NewJeans Haerin’s life forever

Rising 16-metre off the cliffside of Guanabara Bay in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Oscar Niemeyer’s visionary architecture comes in the saucer-shaped form of the Niterói Contemporary Art Museum (MAC) that seems to hover above the ground.

Defined by its 50-metre diameter cupola, an 817-square-metre reflecting pool encircles the cylindrical base “like a flower,” as Niemeyer described, creating the illusion of a floating structure. 

Meanwhile, the wide, sweeping access ramp leads visitors into the museum, where the 360-degree viewing gallery reveals breathtaking views of Rio de Janeiro and Sugarloaf Mountain.

Don't miss: Prix Versailles unveils World’s Most Beautiful Museums 2024

In conjunction with MAC’s 20th anniversary and reopening in 2016, Louis Vuitton utilised the voluminous space for its Grand Prix-inspired Cruise 2017 collection. 

As models descended the curving red-carpeted ramp, their procession echoed the building’s fluid lines, bringing Niemeyer’s modernist vision to life; simultaneously, showcasing Ghesquière’s designs that featured a colourful, Rio-inspired palette and race-car-like graphics.

“I so admire the power of Oscar Niemeyer’s conviction. His vision, his radicality, his utopia even,” said Ghesquière. “Being able to show a fashion collection in such an architecturally powerful space is a sensorial experience.”

Read more: Louis Vuitton welcomes global superstar Lisa as new house ambassador

One can’t speak about modernist architectural icons without mentioning Eero Saarinen’s masterpiece, the TWA Flight Center at JFK Airport in New York.

With its striking silhouette reminiscent of a bird in flight, embodying the spirit of the Jet Age, the structure rises 75 feet high, featuring a thin-shell roof composed of four concrete shells of varying thickness, and supported by four Y-shaped piers. Large green-tinted glass walls wrap around the building, fostering a visual connection between the interior and the airport landscape.

See also: 7 indomitable father-child architect duos

Inside the two-storey head house, which Saarinen described as being like the “Leonardo da Vinci flying machine,” ceramic tiles line the concave walls and floors, and a central staircase connects to the intermediate level, enhancing the fluid design.

Although no longer operating as an airport terminal, its architectural significance offers valuable insights into the synthesis of form and function in 20th-century airport design.

In 2019, high-fashion enthusiasts gathered at the Flight Center for Louis Vuitton’s Cruise 2020 collection. Echoing the space that blends nostalgia and innovation, Ghesquière’s designs featured silk jackets embellished with the New York skyline and futuristic LED-screen handbags.

Don't miss: 9 striking homes in the Big Apple that manifest a New York state of mind

The Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana in Rome, Italy’s EUR district, designed by Giovanni Guerrini, Ernesto Bruno La Padula, and Mario Romano, embodies the core principles of Italian rationalism: strict geometry, functionality, and minimalism.

Often referred to as the “Square Colosseum,” its distinctive cubic edifice rises six levels high, featuring a rhythmic visual sequence of 54 repetitive arches on each façade, eschewing monotony through the clever use of depth and shading.

Besides that, the choice of travertine as the primary building material not only connects the palazzo to Rome’s architectural heritage, but also lends it a dynamic quality, as its appearance shifts with changing light conditions.

Read more: Home tour: A designer couple’s Los Angeles home with Japanese design accents

While rooted in the Fascist era, the Palazzo has transcended its original purpose, serving as Fendi’s headquarters since 2015, and accommodating several of the fashion brand’s campaigns, such as the launch of the ‘F is For’ campaign in 2017, when the rooftop became a canvas for a massive ‘Calligraffiti’ piece by Russian artist Pokras Lampas. 

More recently, in 2021, the palazzo provided a stunning backdrop for Fendi’s Men’s Spring Summer 2022 collection, with creative director Silvia Venturini Fendi drawing inspiration from the building’s unique vantage point over Rome’s skyline.

See also: 9 fashion forward home collections from Milan Design Week 2024

Commissioned by Dr Jonas Salk, the inventor of the polio vaccine, the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, California showcases American architect Louis Kahn’s mastery of light and space.

The symmetrical layout is flanked by two parallel laboratory blocks, minimalist concrete structures made with volcanic ash using ancient Roman techniques. They enclose an open travertine courtyard with a long, framed view of the Pacific Ocean, accentuated by a thin linear fountain that seems to reach for the horizon, emitting a pinkish glow against the water elements.

Don't miss: 5 iconic minimalist landmarks to see in your lifetime

Kahn’s brutalist architecture hosted its first fashion event, when Ghesquière premiered the Louis Vuitton Cruise Collection 2023 in the travertine courtyard. 

“The Salk Institute has been a wonder for me over the years, and Louis Kahn’s incredible brutalist architecture, set against the Pacific Ocean and California sunsets, offers endless inspiration–a celebration of intelligence, knowledge, and belief in the power of science,” the brand’s artistic director later mused.

Complementing the venue’s blend of past and future, the fashion collection featured voluminous gowns mimicking the lines of UFOs, alongside space-inspired metallic fabrics, embellished biker jackets and Roman-style ensembles.

NOW READ

Living large: 7 most expensive homes featured on Selling Sunset season 8

Why is it important to build homes that withstand climate change?

7 stunning Brutalist homes redefining Southeast Asian architecture