{"id":279,"date":"2024-09-09T13:45:00","date_gmt":"2024-09-09T11:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/neuronthemes.com\/ponte\/?p=279"},"modified":"2025-04-10T15:12:43","modified_gmt":"2025-04-10T13:12:43","slug":"alvar-aalto-le-mage-du-nord-architecte-et-designer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/elips-3d.com\/en\/alvar-aalto-the-magus-of-the-north-architect-and-designer\/","title":{"rendered":"Alvar Aalto, the Magus of the North, architect and designer"},"content":{"rendered":"

Beginning of the last century.<\/strong> February 3, 1898, Kuortane<\/strong>Finland. Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto<\/strong> gives his first cry. His father, Johan Henrik Aalto<\/strong>was a Finnish-speaking surveyor, and his mother, Selly (Selma) Matilda (n\u00e9e Hackstedt) was a Swedish-speaking postal worker.<\/p>\n

At the age of 18, having chosen a career in architecture, he went to Helsinki<\/strong>where \u00c9cole polytechnique<\/strong> (today's Aalto University) was the only place in Finland<\/strong> where architecture was taught. He graduated in 1921.<\/p>\n

He began working at Helsink<\/strong>i, but his first orders were not to his liking.<\/p>\n

In 1923 he opened his first practice in Jyv\u00e4skyl\u00e4<\/strong> where his family moved when he was 5. He hopes to get more orders as a local boy. The following year, he hired Aino Marsio<\/strong>an architecture graduate, as his assistant. But assistant wasn't enough: six months later, she also became his wife. 1924, the start of a creative duo that would go down in history. They imagined, designed, built and won projects, a fruitful creative collaboration that lasted 25 years.<\/p>\n

\"alvar

alvar and aino aalto in 1924<\/p><\/div>\n

The honeymoon by Alvar Aalto<\/strong> in Italy in 1924 had a significant influence on his work and career.<\/p>\n

The Aalto family comes to Verona, Padua, Florence and Venice<\/strong>. This trip marked a turning point in Aalto's style, moving from Nordic classicism to modernism.<\/p>\n

The sepulchre Rucellai d'Alberti<\/strong> (1455-1460) inspired their first major work at Jyv\u00e4skyl\u00e4<\/strong>the Club des Travailleurs<\/strong> (completed in 1925).<\/p>\n

\"Jyv\u00e4skyl\u00e4,

Jyv\u00e4skyl\u00e4, the Workers' Club<\/p><\/div>\n

Aalto incorporated Southern European architectural elements into his designs, such as patios, which he adapted to the Nordic environment.<\/p>\n

This trip enabled him to forge links with avant-garde Italian architects, expanding his professional network.<\/p>\n

This trip to Italy therefore played a crucial role in the development of his unique style. by Alvar Aalto<\/strong>blending Mediterranean influences with Nordic sensibilities, his international reputation is beginning to travel faster than he is.<\/p>\n

In 1927, Aalto moved his agency to Turku<\/strong>300 kilometers from\u00a0Jyv\u00e4skyl\u00e4<\/strong>not for tourism, no, but for the good reason that Turku<\/strong>is the gateway to Europe on the move. A port city that exudes prosperity, more relaxed thanHelsinki<\/strong>and conveniently located, not far from Stockholm<\/strong>As the center of Scandinavia's cultural avant-garde, it enabled Aalto to stay in touch with the artistic and architectural trends of the day.<\/p>\n

The city offers him projects like a helping hand to a good friend, such as the newspaper building. Turun Sanomat\u00a0<\/strong>in 1929, its first functionalist building. Visit Paimio sanatorium<\/strong> (1929-1933) marked a turning point in his career. This project enabled him to develop his vision of human-centered architecture. It was for this sanatorium that he designed the famous armchair Paimio<\/strong>designed to make breathing easier for tuberculosis sufferers.<\/p>\n

\"alvar

Paimio sanatorium<\/p><\/div>\n

This move marked a turning point in Aalto's style, as he moved from Nordic classicism to modernism, influenced by the international style he had observed on his travels in Europe.<\/p>\n

He met a number of stimulating colleagues, including Erik Bryggman<\/strong> or several interesting advocates of the new architecture, people who would become friends, such as Carola and Siegfried Giedion<\/strong>the critic, and Lazlo Moholy-Nagy<\/strong>professor at Bauhaus<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Artek Foundation<\/h2>\n

December 1935, Alvar Aalto<\/strong>his wife Aino Aalto<\/strong>art gallery owner Mayor Gullichsen<\/strong> and the art historian Nils-Gustav Hahl <\/strong>found Artek, <\/strong>a company specializing in furniture design and manufacture.<\/p>\n

Artek<\/strong>quickly becomes much more than a furniture box, it's a platform for Finnish design.<\/p>\n

The name, \"\u00a0Artek<\/strong>\" is not chosen at random. It's an arranged marriage between \"art\" and \"technology\", reflecting the desire to combine these two concepts, echoing the Modern Movement.<\/p>\n

The company aimed to design practical, functional furniture for everyday life, while adding a touch of modern art.<\/p>\n

In this adventure, Aino, the Aalto lady, is not playing the part of an extra. She's at the helm of design, with an eye as sharp as a saw blade and an aesthetic vision that borders on the hypnotic. Under her leadership, Artek<\/strong> doesn't just make cool stuff. No, it creates icons, including glued-laminated wood creations like the stool Stool 60<\/strong> (1933) and stool 64<\/strong> (1935), the 81B 82B \/ 82 <\/strong>(1935), Le fauteuil Paimio<\/strong> (1931), the suspension Golden Bell<\/strong> (1937) or A110 <\/strong>(1952), furniture that the world has come to love. The company still exists today and continues to produce classic by Alvar and Aino<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"Stool

Artek Stool 60<\/p><\/div>\n

In 1933, with the construction of the Paimio<\/strong>Aalto's reputation abroad was firmly established, and he set out to conquer new markets.Helsinki<\/strong>. The Finnish capital was a stronghold for architects of the old guard, and commissions were not easy to come by. The Viipuri library<\/strong> (1927-1935), now in Russia<\/strong>is another outstanding achievement of this period, illustrating its modernist approach.<\/p>\n

Then he moved to Munkkiniemi<\/strong>a district ofHelsinki<\/strong>where he built a house for himself, for them, for their lives. In the autumn of 1936, it was finished, and he moved in. This house is more than a roof over his head; it's an idea, a kind of rough draft for his future. Villa Mairea<\/em><\/strong> he would later imagine for his friends Gullichsen<\/strong>. A house that breathes, like him and his projects.<\/p>\n

\"Alvar

Alvar Aalto Villa Mairea<\/p><\/div>\n