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Vintage closed-frame armchair with zebra fabric, c. 1933

Alvar Aalto is regarded as Finland’s most famous architect. He not only used his talents to create beautiful buildings, but also to design beautiful furniture.

Vintage table with L-leg, c. 1935

In 1933, Aalto invented a new form of laminated bent-wood called the “L-leg.” He considered this L-leg design his greatest achievement. These legs could be attached directly to tables, chairs and stool tops. He wanted to create in wood what the modernists created with metal tubing.

Aalto Vase / Savoy Vase, c. 1936

Aalto was also an esteemed glass designer, and his most famous work in glass is the Aalto or Savoy vase. He said he was inspired by a mud puddle.

Vintage 2-tiered, closed-frame table, c. 1930s

“All the time, even daily, whenever I walk into Aalto’s masterpiece, I have a sensation of breathing fresh air; similar to reading a book on French cooking, or Japanese raku pottery.” – Br. Claude Lane, O.S.B., monk of �Ǹ�Թ�

Fan leg tripod stool, c. 1950s

Aalto is the undisputed master of Nordic Modernism. With the establishment of his studio in the early 1920s, Aalto’s architectural practice quickly embraced the developing international styles.

Tripod stool 60, black linoleum top, c. 1934

Aalto believed that architecture must sit comfortably within its natural landscape, replicate its forms, and use its materials. Nowhere is that more evident than in his furniture, textile and lighting designs, of which the simple, almost naïve-looking “60 Stool” is perhaps one of the most famous.

Vintage pair of hallway chairs, c. 1932

“Aalto’s building itself and everything in it of his design holds you quietly and peacefully in place and asks of you a similar level of
excellence in your own time within his space.” – Abbot Jeremy Driscoll, O.S.B., monk of �Ǹ�Թ�

Entry Door Handles. �Ǹ�Թ� Library, 1970

“Beauty is the harmony of purpose and form.” – Alvar Aalto

Vintage cantilevered chaise with “spring leaf support,” c. 1937

Aalto was one of the first to deviate from the stiff geometry of the early modern movement and to stress informality in a simple and humane style.

Armchair, black leather upholstery, c. 1940s

“God created paper for the purpose of drawing architecture on it. Everything else is, at least for me, an abuse of paper!” – Alvar Aalto

Vintage Y-Leg table, c. 1930s

Aalto’s style is regarded as organic, lyrical, and even romantic. He achieved an international reputation through his more than 200 buildings, ranging from factories to churches to libraries and an array of simple and appealing furniture designs.

Vintage tea trolley 900, c. 1937

Alvar Aalto’s lifetime conversation with nature, architecture, design and the human being has become a living legacy. His style became known as humanist modernism.

Curved study area overlooking the mezzanine

The �Ǹ�Թ� Library is one of the most outstanding examples of the lyrical architecture of Aalto’s later years.