MIAMI WAVES: A SYMPHONY IN ARCHITECTURE

Imagine sleeping wrapped in warm timber waves, floating gently above the ground, surrounded by soft light and endless reflections.

Miami Waves is more than just a bed stand. It is a fully immersive spatial installation in the heart of Downtown Miami. Designed by Mamou-Mani and fabricated entirely in-house at our London-based Fab.Pub studio, the project merges architectural vision with hands-on craftsmanship.

The structure is composed of 46 custom-cut timber panels that flow seamlessly from wall to ceiling, encircling a floating bed in sculptural, flame-like geometry. Mirrors positioned at the end of the room extend the rhythmic form into infinity, creating an atmosphere that feels both intimate and expansive. Soft, dimmable LEDs behind the panels cast a gentle glow, allowing the natural timber to shine like silk.

At the core of the design is an innovative use of parametric modelling and fabrication. A pattern of laser-cut kerf lines alters the global properties of the plywood sheets, making them locally flexible. This precision enables the wood to bend and form complex 3D curves without the need for significant supporting framework. The method reinterprets traditional timber bending by using the beam width of the laser itself to create torsional springs within the material.

The panels are left untreated, exposing the natural tone of the engineered timber and creating gradients of burn marks that follow the gradual lattice-hinge patterns. The result is both raw and refined. It is an environment that blurs the boundary between architecture, craft, and dream.

Miami Waves reflects our core belief that when designers and fabricators work together as one, spaces can transcend function and become emotional, transformative experiences.

The structure was made at the architect’s digital fabrication laboratory in London, The Fab.Pub and represents the rise of a new kind of architecture in which the designer is also the “maker”. It is an iteration from the first application of the Wooden Waves at the London Headquarter of Buro Happold which won the American Masterprize in 2016.

Each panel is laser cut from from 3mm thick birch plywood sheets. They are then transported flat packed to site and folded in-situ into unexpected configurations through an opensource and innovative digital fabrication technique of “lattice hinge formation”, documented and shared by Aaron Porterfield on his “The Instructables”.