Alvar Aalto Furniture
An architect and designer, Alvar Aalto deserves an immense share of the credit for bringing Scandinavian modernism to a prominent place in the global arena. In both his buildings and in his vintage furniture — which ranges from chairs, tables and lighting to table- and glassware — Aalto’s sensitivity to the natural world and to organic forms and materials tempered the hardness of rationalist design.
Relatively few Aalto buildings exist outside Finland. (Just four exist in the United States, and only one — the sinuous 1945 Baker House dormitory at M.I.T. — is easily visited.) International attention came to Aalto, whose surname translates to English as “wave,” primarily through his furnishings.
Instead of the tubular metal framing favored by the Bauhaus designers and Le Corbusier, Aalto insisted on wood. His aesthetic is best represented by the Paimio armchair, developed in 1930 as part of his overall design of a Finnish tuberculosis sanatorium. Comfortable, yet light enough to be easily moved by patients, the chair’s frame is composed of two laminated birch loops; the seat and back are formed from a single sheet of plywood that scrolls under at the headrest and beneath the knees, creating a sort of pillow effect. Aalto’s use of plywood had enormous influence on Charles and Ray Eames, Arne Jacobsen, Marcel Breuer and others who later came to the material.
Concerned with keeping up standards of quality in the production of his designs, Aalto formed the still-extant company Artek in 1935, along with his wife, Aino Aalto, whose glass designs were made by the firm. In the latter medium, in 1936 the Aaltos together created the iconic, undulating Savoy vase, so-called for the luxe Helsinki restaurant for which the piece was designed.
Artek also produced Aalto pendants and other lighting designs, many of which — such as the Angel’s Wing floor lamp and the Beehive pendant — incorporate a signature Aalto detail: shades made of concentric enameled-metal rings graduated down in diameter. The effect of the technique is essential Alvar Aalto: at once precise, simple, and somehow poetic.
Find a collection of vintage Alvar Aalto stools, vases, dining tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Mid-20th Century French Alvar Aalto Furniture
Metal
Mid-20th Century Finnish Modern Alvar Aalto Furniture
Leather, Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Finnish Mid-Century Modern Alvar Aalto Furniture
Leather, Birch
Mid-20th Century Finnish Mid-Century Modern Alvar Aalto Furniture
Birch, Plywood
Mid-20th Century Finnish Mid-Century Modern Alvar Aalto Furniture
Fabric, Birch, Bentwood
20th Century Finnish Mid-Century Modern Alvar Aalto Furniture
Birch, Bentwood
Mid-20th Century Finnish Mid-Century Modern Alvar Aalto Furniture
Birch, Plywood
Mid-20th Century Finnish Mid-Century Modern Alvar Aalto Furniture
Fabric, Velvet, Birch
Mid-20th Century Finnish Mid-Century Modern Alvar Aalto Furniture
Bouclé
1970s Norwegian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Alvar Aalto Furniture
Bentwood, Upholstery
1960s Finnish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Alvar Aalto Furniture
Natural Fiber, Bentwood
Early 20th Century Finnish Modern Alvar Aalto Furniture
Laminate, Bentwood
1930s Finnish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Alvar Aalto Furniture
Birch, Plywood
1960s Finnish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Alvar Aalto Furniture
Sheepskin, Birch
20th Century Finnish Modern Alvar Aalto Furniture
Upholstery
1930s Finnish Modern Vintage Alvar Aalto Furniture
Plywood
1930s Finnish Modern Vintage Alvar Aalto Furniture
Brass
20th Century Finnish Alvar Aalto Furniture
Brass
1950s Finnish Modern Vintage Alvar Aalto Furniture
Teak
1930s Finnish Vintage Alvar Aalto Furniture
Bentwood
1930s Finnish Modern Vintage Alvar Aalto Furniture
Birch
