Alvar Aalto

Born in 1898 in Kuortane in Finland, Alvar Aalto's early development occurred under the influence of classical modernism. Following the completion of his architecture studies at the Polytechnic in Helsinki, Alvar Aalto travelled extensively through Europe, becoming acquainted with the likes of Le Corbusier, Fernand Léger or László Moholy-Nagy. Through his participation in the Congrès International d'Architecture this field was extended to include Walter Gropius. In 1929 Aalto won the design competition for a new sanatorium in Paimio, a work which can be seen as the foundation for the organic construction that characterized later Aalto works. The endearingly lively furniture designs of the Finnish designer and architect, as well as his accessories, express a desire to find a formal expression of the unity of the human being with his environment. From 1940 Alvar Aalto taught architecture at MIT in Cambridge.