Aluminaire House built in 1931 is part of the Palm Springs Art Museum. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

It was supposed to be the house of the future. Today it’s a museum piece.

Aluminaire House, the first metal house in the United States, was designed by architects A. Lawrence Kocher and Albert Frey. Frey spent most of life in Palm Springs.

An exhibit sign says, “(This) is one of the first examples of European-style modernist architecture in the United States. Built in 1931 as a full-scale model house for a temporary exhibition, it was intended to be a prototype of mass-produced housing, factory made with modern materials. Composed primarily of aluminum, steel, and glass, it was an experiment in realizing a democratic ideal in architecture of creating affordable, well-designed homes using modern industrial methods and materials.”

Architectural Record recently listed it as one of the most important buildings created in the world in the last 125 years.

It became part of the Palm Springs Art Museum’s permanent collection in 2024; erected outside to the left of the main museum.

All that corrugated metal looks like it would make the inside hot. It is on the outside, according to a sign warning people not to touch it.

Fire and ADA codes don’t allow access to the interior, which is unfortunate. But it’s still fun to look at and walk around.

It fits in in Palm Springs with all of its mid-century modernism.

The 1,200-square-foot boxy structure is three stories with five rooms. It’s built on six columns.

“The house emboldened a new architectural movement in the United States. The Aluminaire was an overt demonstration of bringing together the ideas of mass production and high-density community planning,” according to Visit Palm Springs’ website.