Aalto

Taschen Basic Architecture

by Louna Lahti

"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."

Genres: Architecture, Art, Nonfiction, Design, History

96 pages, Paperback

First published December 2, 2004

Reviews

[d · Rating 4 out of 5]

“In theory I’m a damn liberal and a man of the opposition, but in practice I’m an architect and in general a great guy!”

I've always been enamored with Saynatsalo Hall, so I figured it was time to get better acquainted with Aalto's body of work. As with all Taschen publications, this was a good introduction to him and his work. I liked Aalto's formal explorations and his bold usage of curvilinear geometry, especially in conjunction with the softness of his materials and in contrast with the rigidity of his rectilinear geometry. I particularly enjoyed it as used in his ceilings: Maison Carre's beautiful entrance and the Viipuri Library's amphitheater. I can see why he became such a huge inspiration for the trending Scandi-style interiorsl however, there is a sense of authenticity and curiosity in his work that lame Pinterest copies cannot emulate. I liked his work on acoustics and material exploration, but I am not head over heels with his work. Good to learn about regardless, though.

Quotes:

The young architect Elissa Mäkiniemi and Alvar Aalto were married on the 4th of October 1952.

“Architecture cannot save the world, but it can set a good example.”

Paimio Sanatorium

romantic functionalism
finish pavilion northern lights wall
Experimental summer house
The construction has a heroic location

that is reminiscent of the nature- oriented Greek temples.

30 kinds of brick on the facade to experiment

“Free-standing walls and openings suggest something past and lost; in this lies the nostalgia of ruins. The relationship of the building to nature appears almost mythical. Aalto wrote in 1921: “Nothing old is born anew. Yet it doesn’t disappear completely either. And what has already been arises again and again in new form.”

House of Culture

Wedge-shaped bricks invented for wedge-shape building

Community center commissioned by communists

Church of the Three Crosses

Lead glass window crown of thorns theme

The walls are partly straight and partly curved due to acoustic reasons, according to Aalto. Lutheran church services require three central points for every church hall; altar, pulpit and organ loft, where the choir often stands. According to Aalto's solution the partition walls diagonally across from the pulpit have a curved form; they cut off the corner of the hall furthest away from the pulpit. Thus, during the sermon, churchgoers all sit about the same distance away from the pulpit. The organ loft is located to the right of the altar above the entrance. During the planning of the acoustics of the interior a miniature model was used with mirrors reflecting rays of light, intended to make the sound waves visible.

Maison Carré

DEJI: Glorious entrance with the curved pinewood ceiling

Neue Vahr Block of Flats

Interesting floor layout

Finlandia Hall as “sounding body”,
brittle Carrara marble

[Ew Lake · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not sure if the writing, the editing, or the translation was poor - likely all three. Thank goodness the text was short and the photos were interesting.

[Bert Huisman]

8

[Adrián · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesante monografía de este gran arquitecto. Un poco sórdida al inicio pero permite observar muy bien la evolución de su obra.

[ilaria · Rating 4 out of 5]

un must dell'architettura scandinava, utile per approfondimenti!

[طارق (Tarek) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Aalto's work, but this book was just dry.[return]I give it 3.5 only because it's meant to be an inexpensive introduction to Aalto's work, and it is inexpensive..but the writing is just dry. You really get nothing from the articles about the buildings..but it is a nice intro to the architect's life and it does showcase a few of his best works...albeit in a dry manner..[return][return]If you aren't really interested in his work, this is perfect for you.[return]But if you want a decent look into some of his buildings and materials and philosophy, then your going to have to splurge a little

[Olga Nikolaeva · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is nothing wrong with Aalto and his beautiful works but the book is very dry and doesn't give much information apart from dates and descriptive annotations. It's good to have on a shelf, to leaf through photos, but that's probably it. Anyway, for Aalto's sake worth having and looking through.

[Vanlilith]

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[Suejin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would try a different book about Alvar Aalto. The book doesn’t provide any insights on his approach rather it just showcase his projects.

[Vanlilith]

architettura&arte