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Alvar Aalto
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Definition
Finnish architect and designer (1898–1976), one of the great humanists of modern architecture. Aalto rejected the rigid functionalism of the International Style in favour of warmer, more organic forms influenced by nature and Finnish landscape. His buildings are celebrated for their light, tactility, and care for the user.
Example
Viipuri Municipal Library (1935) and the Villa Mairea (1939) are among his most celebrated early works, but Aalto's career spanned decades of housing, civic buildings, and furniture design — the Aalto vase remains iconic.