A Brazilian architect built a UFO-shaped house in 1974 and planned to live there temporarily; almost 50 years later, he is still living inside it

A Brazilian architect turned an unusual housing experiment into his own long-term home when he built Casa Bola in São Paulo. Eduardo Longo began constructing the spherical residence in 1974, completing it in 1979 after building it largely by hand. Designed as a prototype for a different way of living, this 8-metre-wide structure challenged the straight walls and conventional layouts common in homes. More than four decades later, the futuristic sphere remains closely connected to Longo himself. In 2026, it finally opened to the public as part of the ABERTO5 exhibition.How a Brazilian architect’s idea of a UFO-shaped house became a realityCasa Bola emerged from Longo’s interest in changing the way people could live. Rather than designing another conventional house, he explored the possibility of spherical housing that could work as a flexible living unit. Architecture Hunter reports the project as a prototype for a lighter and more adaptable form of living, with the potential for such units to be replicated or even transported.The idea was unique for 1970s São Paulo. The sphere was not chosen simply because it looked futuristic. According to Domus, Longo considered the shape an efficient way of enclosing space while using less material. His larger vision involved prefabricated spherical homes that could be placed within a new kind of urban environment.That ambition eventually produced a single full-scale example. Longo built Casa Bola between 1974-1979 above his own office and residence in the Itaim Bibi district. According to ArchDaily, the completed structure has an 8-metre diameter and remains suspended above the rooftop slab of the property.The 5-year construction created a fascinating interior of the UFO-houseThe construction process was just as unconventional as the finished shape. ArchDaily reports that Longo built the house by hand, forming ferrocement over a complicated framework of recycled steel tubes. Instead of treating the walls, furniture and fittings as separate elements, he incorporated them into the continuous structure.Inside, the absence of conventional corners changes how the space is used. Architecture Hunter reports that the curved geometry creates a continuous environment in which movement becomes part of the experience of living. The house does not divide space in quite the same way as a conventional rectangular home.ABERTO describes the interior as being organised through continuous routes, changes in level and different relationships between the body and the surrounding space. That arrangement makes the building more than a unique exterior. Its spherical form influences everyday movement and the way its rooms connect with one another. The result was a home that looked more like a futuristic object than an ordinary residence.Longo turned his futuristic house prototype into a lifelong homeLongo’s experiment did not develop into the widespread system of spherical housing he had envisioned. Instead, Casa Bola remained a single prototype in São Paulo. According to Domus, Longo lived in it with his family for decades, turning the experimental structure into a genuine everyday home.That long period of occupation gives Casa Bola a different significance from an architectural model or an unbuilt concept. It was not simply an idea presented on paper. Longo tested his ideas by living inside the result.The house also remained surprisingly discreet despite its striking appearance. ArchDaily describes it as almost imperceptible within São Paulo’s urban landscape, even though its unusual form sets it apart from the surrounding buildings.For years, therefore, Casa Bola was primarily a private residence not a public architectural attraction. Its significance was known within architectural circles, while most people could not simply walk inside and experience its spaces.ABERTO5 brought the private sphere into public viewIn 2026, ABERTO5 opened Casa Bola to visitors for the first time. The official ABERTO website says the fifth edition ran from 8 March to 31 May 2026 and occupied the house as part of an exhibition combining art, architecture and design.Around 60 works by more than 50 Brazilian and international artists were presented across roughly 1,000 square metres connected with the exhibition. Many of the works were created specifically for the occasion and developed in response to Casa Bola’s experimental character.The exhibition also included material documenting Longo’s wider career, including drawings, photographs, models and other projects spanning decades. This gave visitors an opportunity to see the spherical house not as an isolated curiosity, but as part of the architect’s broader thinking about architecture.The building itself became an important part of the exhibition. Instead of serving merely as a neutral backdrop, its curves, circulation and compact spaces shaped how the artworks were experienced.A 1970s vision still stands in São PauloCasa Bola remains a rare example of an architectural experiment that became an enduring home. Longo’s original ideas about spherical, flexible housing did not transform the way cities were built, but the prototype survived and continued to be inhabited.Its opening through ABERTO5 offered a rare chance to examine those ideas from inside. As reported by ABERTO, the building represents a manifesto-like work of Brazilian architecture that had remained a discreet presence in São Paulo.For Longo, however, Casa Bola was never simply a historical object. It became part of his everyday life. Built during a period when architects were imagining radically different futures for housing, the sphere has now outlived many of the predictions surrounding it.Catch the latest World News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.