Fab 40: XTEN, Los Angeles
Drawing references from the geometries of the surrounding canyon and hillside slopes, rather than the architecture of the adjacent structure, XTEN’s Diamond House is a bold addition to an existing family house. Laser-cut aluminium panels create the façade’s unusual patterns, glowing from inside at night and looking light, porous and pleasantly reflective during the day.
The dynamic new diamond-form of the extension is also reflected on the site’s retaining walls and concrete rooftop shape, underling the special character of this Santa Monica house. The Los Angeles-based practice has been working at full-speed for the past few months, with a number of commissions reaching completion, including their Hermosa Beach SurfHouse and the Encino-located Sapphire Gallery.
Amangiri resort, Utah
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Best Made Axes
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Blackman Cruz store, LA
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Commonwealth Utilities S/S 09 collection
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BlackWhite House in Bethesda, Maryland by David Jameson Architects
Read the article: David Jameson Architects
Methow Cabin, by Eggleston Farkas Architects, Seattle
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Hotel Erwin, Venice Beach, California
Illustration from the Monkey Bar by Barry Blitt, New York
Read the article: Monkey Bar, NYC
Interior of the Monkey Bar
Illustration for the Monkey Bar by Paul Cox
My Best Fred, NYC
Read the article: My Best Fred
Neal Creek, Hood River by Paul Mckean, Oregon
Read the article: Paul Mckean, Oregon
Beaker & Flask, Portland
Read the article: Portland food
Beast, Portland
Naomi from Beast, Portland
Laurelhurst Market, Portland
Laurelhurst Market, Portland
Bunks famous sandwiches, Portland
Le Pigeon, Portland
Viridian Farms, Portland
Installation by Johanna Grawunder in Robert at MAD, NYC
Read the article: Robert at MAD, NYC
Speakeasy - Rye NYC
Read the article: Speakeasy Rye, NYC
Speakeasy - Clover Club, NYC
Read the article: Clover Club, NYC
Speakeasy - The Violet Hour, Chicago
Read the article: The Violet Hour, Chicago
Speakeasy - The Varnish, LA
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Speakeasy - Bourbon & Branch, San Francisco
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Diamond House, XTEN Architecture, LA
Read the article: XTEN Architecture
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
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Pedro y Juana's take on architecture: 'We want to level the playing field’
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The Lighthouse draws on Bauhaus principles to create a new-era workspace campus
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We explore Franklin Israel’s lesser-known, progressive, deconstructivist architecture
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The Frick Collection's expansion by Selldorf Architects is both surgical and delicate
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Remembering architect David M Childs (1941-2025) and his New York skyline legacy
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