Concrete is no longer just a niche material in residential construction. As natural disasters become more frequent and severe, the shortcomings of traditional wood-framed homes are being laid bare.

The Aluminaire House drew crowds, and ridicule, in 1931. After several moves and a brush with demolition, it has found a home in Southern California. By Jori Finkel Reporting from Palm Springs, Calif.

JOSEPH HUDNUT, Dean of Harvard’s Graduate School of Design, is the logical critic to present this provocative philosophy because his own progressiveness, as well as his penetrating mind and persuasive ...