Dates:
Fri, 24 Apr 2026, 11:00–Sun, 10 Jan 2027, 18:00
13 Stories about Humane Design explores some of Alvar Aalto’s best-known buildings from various angles, some of them surprising. What did the Social Insurance Institution Main Office do with its clients’ gloves? Why does the University of Jyväskylä’s Main Building have such small toilets? The exhibition also takes a look at Sunila, and considers how Finland’s first forest suburb has gone from being a setting for the everyday lives of industrial workers to an internationally sought-after holiday-home destination. These and ten other Aalto sites form the Aalto Works series, which Finland is currently proposing be designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. UNESCO is expected to announce its decision on this in summer 2026.
13 Stories about Humane Design sets up a dialogue between the architect’s intentions and users’ experiences. What face does a building show to its residents, clients, or patients? What kind of everyday environment did this architecture that was soon to become world-famous offer people at the time of its construction – and what is it like today?
Alvar Aalto’s 13 key buildings
The 13 sites of the series include key symbolic buildings in Finland’s development as a Nordic welfare state and member of the international community. Such are the Social Insurance Institution Main Office in Helsinki as the “headquarters of the welfare society”, as well as the Aalto Centre in Seinäjoki and the Säynätsalo Town Hall as centres of everyday democracy serving the needs of the local population.
The Finlandia Hall in Helsi...
Cost: 18/15/10/4/0
Bookings: Booking information is available from the event source.
Categories: Culture and art, Exhibitions and openings, Architecture, Alvar Aalto, Accessible
Image credit: Rune Snellman, Alvar Aalto -säätiö — event-only licence
Source: Event information supplied by Keski-Suomi Events open API (https://keskisuomievents.fi/).