The Wave House, Bali

The owner surfs and skates, and wanted a home that feels like both: fluid, open and made for being outside.

The plot sits among other houses, so the second wish was simple and hard at the same time: rice-field views that no neighbour could ever block.

The land drops 5 metres from one side to the other, which shaped the whole layout and circulation. The wave itself needed a steel structure with poured reinforced concrete to hold its curve.

We shaped the main building as an ocean wave in reverse to the slope, which also pulls air through the house. Concrete is clad in local bengkirai timber, with exposed cement inside, breeze blocks at the entrance and carved Yogya stone for a local touch. Surf and skate boards painted in Balinese art hang as artwork.\nFive bedrooms host guests and staff. The ground floor opens onto a terrace with a sunken lounge by the pool and an open living room with the kitchen, plus a cigar and cinema room. The first floor holds the master bedroom, a games room and a bright atrium gallery, and a yoga studio crowns the roof. Down the slope sit a 120 m² skate park and a BBQ pavilion for large evenings. The whole house runs on a smart-home system from the owner’s phone.

A house that reads as one wave from every side, with views over the rice fields that the neighbours cannot take away. Recognised with an Honorable Mention at the International Design Awards 2026.