Editing Alvar Aalto (section)

==Architecture career==

===Early career: classicism===

Although he is sometimes regarded as among the first and most influential architects of Nordic [[modernism]], closer examination reveals that Aalto (while a pioneer in Finland) closely followed and had personal contacts with other pioneers in Sweden, in particular [[Gunnar Asplund]]<ref>{{harvnb|Paavilainen|1982|p=23}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Aalto|1998|p=29}}</ref> and [[Sven Markelius]].<ref>{{harvnb|Aalto|1998|p=76}}</ref> What they and many others of that generation in the Nordic countries shared was a classical education and an approach to classical architecture that historians now call [[Nordic Classicism]].<ref>{{harvnb|Paavilainen|1982|pp=11–15}}</ref> It was a style that had been a reaction to the previous dominant style of [[National romantic style|National Romanticism]] before moving, in the late 1920s, towards Modernism.<ref>{{Citation|last=Wilson|first=Colin St J. WilsonSir Colin St J.|title=Aalto, Hugo Alvar Henrik|date=2009-01-01|url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780198605683.001.0001/acref-9780198605683-e-0001|work=The Oxford Companion to Architecture|publisher=Oxford University Press|language=en|doi=10.1093/acref/9780198605683.001.0001|isbn=978-0-19-860568-3|access-date=2021-07-06}}</ref>

Upon returning to Jyväskylä in 1923 to establish his own architect's office, Aalto designed several single-family homes designed in the style of Nordic Classicism. For example, the manor-like house for his mother's cousin Terho Manner in Töysa (1923), a summer villa for the Jyväskylä chief constable (also from 1923) and the Alatalo farmhouse in Tarvaala (1924). During this period he completed his first public buildings, the Jyväskylä Workers' Club in 1925, the [[Jyväskylä Defence Corps Building]] in 1926 and the [[Seinäjoki Civil Guard House]] building in 1924–29.{{citation needed|date=February 2018}} He entered several architectural competitions for prestigious state public buildings, in Finland and abroad. This included two competitions for the Finnish Parliament building in 1923 and 1924, the extension to the [[University of Helsinki]] in 1931, and the building to house the [[League of Nations]] in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1926–27. {{citation needed|date=February 2018}}

Aalto's first church design to be completed, [[Muurame church]], illustrates his transition from Nordic Classicism to Functionalism.<ref>{{cite news |title=Alvar Aallon nuoruudensynti remontoidaan alkuperäiseen loistoonsa |trans-title=Alvar Aalto's 'aberration of youth' to be restored to its original glory |url=https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-7898439 |access-date=9 September 2020 |publisher=Yle |date=31 March 2015 |language=fi}}</ref>

This was the period when Aalto was most prolific in his writings, with articles for professional journals and newspapers. Among his most well-known essays from this period are "Urban culture" (1924),<ref>{{harvnb|Aalto|1998|pp=19–20}}</ref> "Temple baths on Jyväskylä ridge" (1925),<ref>{{harvnb|Aalto|1998|pp=17–19}}</ref> "Abbé Coignard's sermon" (1925),<ref>{{harvnb|Aalto|1998|pp=56–57}}</ref> and "From doorstep to living room" (1926).<ref>{{harvnb|Aalto|1998|pp=49–55}}</ref>

[[Image:4Y1A7841 Alvar Aalto, Finland (26710745140).jpg|thumb|[[Villa Mairea]] in [[Noormarkku]]]]
[[Image:Baker House, MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts.JPG|thumb|Facade of [[List of MIT undergraduate dormitories#Baker House|Baker House]] on the [[Charles River]]]]
[[Image:Helsinki University of Technology auditorium.jpg|thumb|The main auditorium of the [[Helsinki University of Technology]] (now [[Aalto University]]) in [[Otaniemi]], Finland (1949–66)]]
[[Image:Aalto cultural house.JPG|thumb|House of Culture, Helsinki]]
[[File:Library Wolfsburg Alvar Aalto photo by Christian Gänshirt.jpg|thumb|Cultural Center [[Wolfsburg]] (1958–62)<ref>[http://aalto-wolfsburg.com/content.php?id=kulturhaus Das Alvar-Aalto-Kulturhaus auf der Website des Alvar Aalto Zentrums Deutschland e.V. Wolfsburg], retrieved 25 January 2015</ref>]]
[[Image:Finlandia A-Wiki.jpg|thumb|[[Finlandia Hall]] (1962–71)]]
[[Image:Aalto-Theater 02.jpg|thumb|The [[Aalto Theatre|Aalto-Theater]] opera house in [[Essen]], Germany]]

===Early career: functionalism===
The shift in Aalto's design approach from classicism to modernism is epitomised by the [[Vyborg Library|Viipuri Library]] in [[Vyborg]] (1927–35), which went through a transformation from an originally classical competition entry proposal to the completed high-modernist building. His humanistic approach is in full evidence in the library: the interior displays natural materials, warm colours, and undulating lines. Due to problems related to financing, compounded by a change of site, the Viipuri Library project lasted eight years. During that time, Aalto designed the Standard Apartment Building (1928–29) in Turku, the Turun Sanomat Building (1929–30), and the Paimio Sanatorium (1929–32), which he designed in collaboration with his first wife [[Aino Aalto]]. A number of factors contributed to Aalto's shift towards modernism: his increased familiarity with international trends, facilitated by his travels throughout Europe; the opportunity to experiment with concrete prefabrication in the Standard Apartment Building; the cutting-edge [[Le Corbusier]]-inspired formal language of the Turun Sanomat Building; and Aalto's application of both in the [[Paimio Sanatorium]] and in the ongoing design for the library. Although the Turun Sanomat Building and Paimio Sanatorium are comparatively pure modernist works, they carried the seeds of his questioning of such an orthodox modernist approach and a move to a more daring, synthetic attitude. It has been pointed out that the planning principle for Paimio Sanatorium – the splayed wings – was indebted to the Zonnestraal Sanatorium (1925–31) by Jan Duiker, which Aalto visited while it was under construction.<ref>{{harvnb|Hipeli|2014|p=116}}</ref> While these early Functionalist bear hallmarks of influences from [[Le Corbusier]], [[Walter Gropius]], and other key modernist figures of central Europe, Aalto nevertheless started to show his individuality in a departure from such norms with the introduction of organic references.

Through Sven Markelius, Aalto became a member of the [[Congres Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne]] (CIAM), attending the second congress in Frankfurt in 1929 and the fourth congress in Athens in 1933, where he established a close friendship with [[László Moholy-Nagy]], [[Sigfried Giedion]], and [[Philip Morton Shand]]. It was during this time that he closely followed the work of the main force driving the new modernism, [[Le Corbusier]], visiting him in his Paris office several times in the following years.

It was not until the completion of the Paimio Sanatorium (1932) and Viipuri Library (1935) that Aalto first achieved world attention in architecture. His reputation grew in the US following the invitation to hold a retrospective exhibition of his works at MOMA in New York in 1938. (This was his first visit to the States.) The exhibition, which later went on a 12-city tour of the country, was a landmark: Aalto was the second-ever architect – after Le Corbusier – to have a solo exhibition at the museum. His reputation grew in the US following the critical reception of his design for the Finnish Pavilion at the [[1939 New York World's Fair]], described by [[Frank Lloyd Wright]] as a "work of genius".<ref>{{harvnb|McCarter|2006|p=143}}</ref> It could be said that Aalto's international reputation was sealed with his inclusion in the second edition of Sigfried Giedion's influential book on Modernist architecture, ''Space, Time, and Architecture: The growth of a new tradition'' (1949), in which Aalto received more attention than any other Modernist architect, including [[Le Corbusier]]. In his analysis of Aalto, Giedion gave primacy to qualities that depart from direct functionality, such as mood, atmosphere, intensity of life, and even national characteristics, declaring that "Finland is with Aalto wherever he goes."

===Mid career: experimentation===
During the 1930s Alvar spent some time experimenting with laminated wood, sculpture and abstract relief, characterized by irregular curved forms. Utilizing this knowledge, he was able to solve technical problems concerning the flexibility of wood while at the same time working out spatial issues in his designs.<ref name=Pelkonen/> Aalto's early experiments with wood and his move away from a purist modernism would be tested in built form with the commission to design [[Villa Mairea]] (1939) in [[Noormarkku]], the luxury home of young industrialist couple Harry and [[Maire Gullichsen]]. It was Maire Gullichsen who acted as the main client, and she worked closely not only with Alvar but also with Aino Aalto on the design, encouraging them to be more daring in their work. The building forms a U-shape around a central inner 'garden' whose central feature is a kidney-shaped swimming pool. Adjacent to the pool is a sauna executed in a rustic style, alluding to both Finnish and Japanese precedents. The design of the house is a synthesis of numerous stylistic influences, from traditional Finnish vernacular to purist modernism, as well as influences from English and Japanese architecture. While the house is clearly intended for a wealthy family, Aalto nevertheless argued that it was also an experiment that would prove useful in the design of mass housing.<ref>{{harvnb|Pallasmaa|1998|p=31}}</ref>

His increased fame led to offers and commissions outside Finland. In 1941, he accepted an invitation as a visiting professor to the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] in the US. During the [[Second World War]], he returned to Finland to direct the Reconstruction Office. After the war, he returned to MIT, where he designed the student dormitory [[List of MIT undergraduate dormitories#Baker House|Baker House]], completed in 1949.{{sfn|Vitra Design Museum}} The dormitory flanked the [[Charles River]], and its undulating form provided maximum view and ventilation for each resident.<ref name="Anderson 2012">{{harvnb|Anderson|2013}}</ref> This was the first building of Aalto's redbrick period. Originally used in Baker House to signify the Ivy League university tradition, Aalto went on to use it in a number of key buildings after his return to Finland, most notably in several of the buildings in the new [[Helsinki University of Technology]] campus (starting in 1950), [[Säynätsalo Town Hall]] (1952), Helsinki Pensions Institute (1954), [[Kulttuuritalo|Helsinki House of Culture]] (1958), as well as in his own summer house, the [[Alvar Aalto Museum#The Muuratsalo Experimental House|Experimental House in Muuratsalo]] (1957).<ref>{{cite web |last1=McCormick |first1=Megan |title=Architects' summer retreats |url=https://architecturetoday.co.uk/architects-summer-retreats/ |website=Architecture Today |date=22 August 2023 |access-date=8 September 2023}}</ref>

In the 1950s Aalto immersed himself in sculpting, exploring wood, bronze, marble, and mixed media. Among the notable works from this period is his 1960 memorial to the [[Battle of Suomussalmi]].  Located on the battlefield, it consists of a leaning bronze pillar on a pedestal.<ref name=Pelkonen/>

===Mature career: monumentalism===
[[File:Jyväskylän Kaupunginteatteri Aalto-laatta.jpg|thumb|200px|Alvar Aalto's signature on the wall of the [[Jyväskylä]] theatre]]
Foremost among Aalto's work from the early 1960s until his death in 1976 were his projects in Helsinki, in particular the huge town plan for the void in the centre of Helsinki adjacent to [[Töölö]] Bay and the vast [[VR warehouses|railway yards]], an area marked on the edges by significant buildings such as the National Museum and the main railway station, both by [[Eliel Saarinen]]. In his town plan, Aalto proposed a line of separate marble-clad buildings fronting the bay, which would house various cultural institutions, including a concert hall, opera, museum of architecture, and headquarters for the [[Finnish Academy]]. The scheme also extended into the [[Kamppi]] district with a series of tall office blocks. Aalto first presented his vision in 1961, but it went through various modifications during the early '60s. Only two fragments of the overall plan were realized: the [[Finlandia Hall]] concert hall (1976) fronting on Töölö Bay and an office building in the Kamppi district for the Helsinki Electricity Company (1975). Aalto also employed the [[Ludwig Mies van der Rohe|Miesian]] formal language of geometric grids used in those buildings for other sites in Helsinki, including the [[Stora Enso headquarters|Enso-Gutzeit headquarters building]] (1962), the [[Academic Bookstore]] (1962), and the SYP Bank building (1969).

Following Aalto's death in 1976, his office continued to operate under the direction of his widow Elissa, who oversaw the completion of works already designed (to some extent), among them the Jyväskylä City Theatre and [[Aalto Theatre|Essen opera house]]. Since the death of Elissa Aalto, the office has continued to operate as the Alvar Aalto Academy, giving advice on the restoration of Aalto buildings and organizing the practice's vast archives.