Aino & Alvar Aalto

Aino & Alvar Aalto examines the shared creative practice of Aino Marsio-Aalto and Alvar Aalto, positioning their work as a collaborative contribution to 20th-century architecture and design. The exhibition focuses on the Aaltos’ influence on international modernism and their integration of art, architecture and design into everyday life. It presents architecture as a total work of art, encompassing interiors, furniture, textiles and lighting, and highlights the couple’s use of organic forms, functional innovation and human-centred design principles.

A central focus is Aino Marsio-Aalto’s role within the partnership. While Alvar Aalto is widely recognised as a major figure in modern architecture and design, the exhibition foregrounds the couple’s intertwined working methods and Aino’s substantial contribution, including drawings signed “A M-A” preserved in the Aalto archives. It also outlines their early professional formation through architectural studies and their collaboration at Alvar Aalto’s Office for Architecture and Monumental Art.

The exhibition is built around more than 300 objects from Pertti Männistö’s private Aalto collection, described as the largest of its kind in the world. The collection includes recognised classics, rare examples, early prototypes and experimental works, with particular attention to craft-based production from the late 1920s to the mid-1960s. The programme also includes Virpi Suutari’s award-winning film about the Aaltos, in which Männistö’s collection is featured.

The exhibition is relevant to audiences and professional fields concerned with architecture, furniture design, interior architecture, textiles, lighting, modernist design history, collecting and design education. No speakers or panellists are specified. Organisations and contributors connected to the exhibition include Vandalorum, Artek, TAF Studio, Stefan Engblom, Kunsthalle Helsinki and Millesgården Museum.

A related project, The Artist’s Stool, invites contemporary artists and designers to interpret Alvar Aalto’s Stool 60. Contributors include Peter Andersson, Karin Broos, Ann Edholm, Folkform, Maria Jeglinska-Adamczewska, Richard Johansson, Jenny Nordberg, Masayoshi Oya, Fredrik Paulsen, Sigrid Sandström, TAF and Gustaf Westman.

Together, the exhibition and associated project consider the Aaltos’ legacy through collaboration, authorship, material experimentation and the ongoing relevance of modernist design in contemporary practice.