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Los Angeles has long enjoyed a reputation as a place where architects can experiment. From futuristic roadside structures to radical private homes and monumental cultural institutions, the city has repeatedly embraced buildings that challenge conventional forms. The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) provides a contemporary example<\/a>. Its new David Geffen Galleries, designed by Peter Zumthor, use an unconventional flowing form that stretches across Wilshire Boulevard, continuing LA\u2019s tradition of ambitious architectural experimentation.<\/p>\n Curves have played a particularly important role in this story. Long before today\u2019s sweeping glass towers, Los Angeles architects were using rounded corners and curved windows to communicate ideas about speed, technology, modernity, and the future.<\/p>\n The 1930s: Streamline Moderne Comes to Los Angeles<\/p>\n Curved windows became especially prominent with the arrival of Streamline Moderne during the 1930s<\/a>. Emerging from Art Deco, the style rejected excessive ornament in favor of smooth surfaces, horizontal lines, rounded corners, and aerodynamic shapes.<\/p>\n The style was particularly suited to Southern California. Los Angeles was becoming increasingly shaped by automobiles, while designers were fascinated by the sleek appearance of airplanes, trains, automobiles, and ocean liners. Buildings began adopting forms associated with these new modes of transportation.<\/p>\n Windows were essential to achieving the effect. Instead of interrupting a fa\u00e7ade with conventional rectangular openings, architects could use horizontal window bands and glazing that wrapped around corners. The result made stationary buildings appear streamlined and dynamic.<\/p>\n Curved Windows as Symbols of Progress<\/p>\n In the early twentieth century, curves represented much more than an aesthetic choice. Aerodynamic forms were closely associated with technological progress.<\/p>\n A rounded building with long horizontal windows could resemble the observation deck of an ocean liner or the smooth body of a modern vehicle. Curved corner windows strengthened this association by removing the hard visual break created by conventional building corners.<\/p>\n Los Angeles proved an ideal setting for these ideas. Architecture was increasingly viewed from moving automobiles rather than exclusively by pedestrians, encouraging architects to create bold silhouettes that could capture attention from the road.<\/p>\n Custom Curved Glass Expands the Possibilities<\/p>\n Manufacturing curved architectural glass was once a demanding process that placed significant restrictions on architects. Modern custom fabrication provides far greater flexibility in the size, radius, thickness, finish, and performance of curved glazing.<\/p>\n This flexibility is valuable for new construction, but it is equally important for restoration. Custom curved windows<\/a> can be manufactured to accommodate the delicate profiles of a Victorian-era curved window or replicate the iconic curves of an Art Deco masterpiece. This allows damaged or outdated glazing to be replaced while respecting the architectural character of historic buildings.<\/p>\n At the other end of the spectrum, architects can specify large curved insulated or laminated panels for contemporary fa\u00e7ades. The same fundamental material can therefore help preserve LA\u2019s architectural history while enabling entirely new forms.<\/p>\n Gerry Building: Curves Take Over the Fa\u00e7ade<\/p>\n Completed in 1947, the Gerry Building in Downtown Los Angeles demonstrates how curved windows survived beyond Streamline Moderne and entered the postwar period.<\/p>\n Designed by architect Claudius E. Miller, the building is particularly recognizable for the eight projecting tiers<\/a> of curved windows running across its fa\u00e7ade. Rather than functioning as minor decorative details, the windows largely define the building\u2019s appearance.<\/p>\n The glazing gives the fa\u00e7ade depth and rhythm while demonstrating how curves could be incorporated into a substantial commercial structure. The building also reflects Downtown LA\u2019s importance to the postwar garment industry, combining practical commercial architecture with a distinctive visual identity.<\/p>\n Century Plaza Hotel: Mid-Century Curves Meet Luxury<\/p>\n By the 1960s, curved architecture had become compatible with a very different vision of Los Angeles: glamorous, modern, and internationally ambitious.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1787868129_772_image-2.png\")
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