“The form is a mystery that eludes every definition.”?Alvar Aalto
Finnish architect Alvar Aalto (1898?1976) was not only influenced by the landscape of his native country, but by the political struggle over Finland’s place within European culture. After early neoclassical buildings, Alvar Aalto turned to ideas based on Functionalism, subsequently moving toward more organic structures, with brick and wood replacing plaster and steel. In addition to designing buildings, furniture, lamps, and glass objects with his wife Aino, he painted and was an avid traveler. A firm believer that buildings have a crucial role in shaping society, Aalto once said, “The duty of the architect is to give life a more sensitive structure.”
Basic Architecture features:
Finnish architect Alvar Aalto (1898?1976) was not only influenced by the landscape of his native country, but by the political struggle over Finland’s place within European culture. After early neoclassical buildings, Alvar Aalto turned to ideas based on Functionalism, subsequently moving toward more organic structures, with brick and wood replacing plaster and steel. In addition to designing buildings, furniture, lamps, and glass objects with his wife Aino, he painted and was an avid traveler. A firm believer that buildings have a crucial role in shaping society, Aalto once said, “The duty of the architect is to give life a more sensitive structure.”
Basic Architecture features:
- Each title contains approximately 120 images, including photographs, sketches, drawings, and floor plans
- Introductory essays explore the architect’s life and work, touching on family and background as well as collaborations with other architects
- The body presents the most important works in chronological order, with descriptions of client and/or architect wishes, construction problems (why some projects were never executed), and resolutions
- The appendix includes a list of complete or selected works, biography, bibliography and a map indicating the locations of the architect’s most famous buildings
The author:
Finnish-born Louna Lahti worked for the Alvar Aalto Society for many years, first as exhibition secretary and later as treasurer, before establishing her own firm in 1984. She has lectured and published extensively on visual arts and architecture.
Finnish-born Louna Lahti worked for the Alvar Aalto Society for many years, first as exhibition secretary and later as treasurer, before establishing her own firm in 1984. She has lectured and published extensively on visual arts and architecture.
