From April 17 to May 18, 2008 the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture in Copenhagen, Denmark is showing the touring exhibition of Finnish architect Alvar Aalto. The exhibition presents Aalto’s relationship with tradition, innovation and nature through the medium of materials, construction, rhythm, detail and changes in form.

The exhibition panels use photos and drawings to highlight Alvar Aalto’s architecture and his use of wood in a variety of buildings from the Villa Flora in the 1920s to Nordic House in Reykjavik in 1968. The models focus on the Villa Kokkonen from the 1960s and the Forest Pavilion for the Lapua Agricultural Show from 1938. The exhibition also includes original models from the Alvar Aalto Museum archives.

In Alvar Aalto’s architecture, wood has an important role symbolically and as a material. Aalto emphasised the biological characteristics of wood and its relationship with people and nature in various different contexts in his architecture. The ease with which wood can be worked, its pleasantness to the touch, its warmth and its potential for taking different finishes were important to him. In contrast to rationalist steel and concrete building, Aalto’s architecture emphasises soft values that are close to nature; people are taken into account in all his designs.

The exhibition has been organised by the Alvar Aalto Museum and designed by Davidsson Architects.

The exhibition will be on show at the Nordic House, Reykjavik, Iceland June 1 – August 30, 2008.

www.alvaraalto.fi