Modern Architecture History - Alvar Aalto in Siena by Szymon Mateusz Ruszczewski
The Finn the Fortress and the Old City, 2017
3rd Alvar Aalto Researchers Network Seminar – Why Aalto?, 2017
Why does the Italian word piazza compare in several descriptions of Alvar Aalto’s designs? Is it ... more Why does the Italian word piazza compare in several descriptions of Alvar Aalto’s designs? Is it his fascination with Italy or a more general reference to what a Mediterranean square is? It appears in various designs, such as Finlandia Hall, Montréal Civic Centre, Säynätsalo Town Hall or the design for Avesta Town Centre.
The study of Mediterranean piazza comes from the present-day importance given to the open space in architecture, far greater than over fifty years ago. New needs have emerged and new connections were established between architecture and other studies. In the light of this situation, one ponders on the nature of public space in Aalto – its inspirations, its functioning and its issues. In order to answer this problem, it is proposed to focus on these three aspects of public spaces in Aalto’s architecture that are connected to the Mediterranean piazza.
Throughout Aalto’s journeys – memories, sketches and holiday photographs, one can see some interest given to the public space in the Mediterranean countries. This very interest is also underlined by some of his correspondence with his former Italian co-workers.
Aalto’s design of central area plan for Montréal (1964) and his cooperation with Mayerovitch constitutes a great example of study of open public space. Thanks to the copious number of correspondence between two of them and to the different amendments made to the design as the work progressed, it is possible to understand better the important issues that led Aalto in his public space designs. Aalto’s interest in creating a more civic, culturally bound space, altered the initial version of the design proposed by Mayerovitch, without although changing it entirely. Amongst various observations, one of his ideas was to introduce a culminating point of the piazza, a public building – referring clearly to the Mediterranean models. Thanks to his intervention, the complex became a cultural leisure centre and gained a more civic dimension. The example of Montréal and its progressive definition constitutes a way of understanding the reasons behind Aalto’s designs for civic centres.
Another type of public space in Aalto’s architecture is shown by buildings as Finlandia Hall (where the foyer is called piazza). The interest in Mediterranean public space and the rigid Finnish climate forced him to create an indoor space that functions as an exterior public one. A functional parallel between such space and an Italian piazza shows how similar they are.
The final part consists in a series of proposals for the contemporary condition of Alvar Aalto’s public spaces, yielded thanks to the analysis of present-day Mediterranean piazza and its transformation in the last fifty years. Amongst them, a more acute attention towards the pedestrian, various initiatives that make the piazza a more civic space, new elements introduced in the public squares design and the importance of recurring elements. The model of a Mediterranean piazza may influence once more Aalto’s public spaces.
6th International Alvar Aalto Meeting on Contemporary Architecture – Technology and Humanism, 2017
“For me the rising town has become a religion, a disease, a madness, call it what you will”,
Alv... more “For me the rising town has become a religion, a disease, a madness, call it what you will”,
Alvar Aalto on the Tuscany towns
The very charm if the villages and cities in Tuscany lies in their position on the hilltops, rising smoothly along the curves on the land. Such is Siena – one of the most beautiful cities of Tuscany, witness of the life in the contrade and the traditional horse race, palio. A city on top of three hills, full of picturesque narrow streets and lanes, arched passageways, stairs and rough slopes. A city where – also – the disabled have a very hard life.
The problem of Siena, and of handicapped citizens or tourists, is to both appease their requirements and to preserve the historical character of the city. Certainly, it is impossible for a person on a hand-pushed wheelchair to move freely around the historical centre. Some streets are inclined by more than 25 degrees – a physical barrier that cannot be crossed even by the motorized wheelchairs. The problem is then not only to gain access to different buildings (which is difficult, given the deeply-rooted tradition of at least one step at the building entrance), but also to move freely around the city.
Several investments were implemented in order to facilitate the access to the city centre from below, such as a series of escalators. The new moving stairs systems enables elderly people to climb from one of the city gates or from the railway station all the way up to the city centre. However, many of these systems are deprived of a proper lift that is strictly necessary for the disabled. Another issue concerning those systems inside the city centre is their impact on the cityscape. Some of the escalators were carved partly in the rock forming the hills of Siena making them almost invisible and letting them stealth with the rest of the urban tissue. There are although no apparent modern constructions in the centre and it has been closed for traffic from 1966 as the very first European city centre. In fact, no wars in the last centuries and few recent constructions allowed the city to remain nearly intact up to now.
The case of Siena shows an important issue concerning reconciling the needs of the disabled and the preservation of the historical heritage. It is although a common problem in many of historical cities, may it be Perugia, Venice, Rome or others. The purpose of this paper is to gather a series of solutions already operational in some cities and propose new ones that may bring us closer to resolving this problem.
Aalto Beyond Finland - Architecture and Design, 2015
This paper discusses the cultural and historical background to Alvar Aalto’s unbuilt design for a... more This paper discusses the cultural and historical background to Alvar Aalto’s unbuilt design for a Cultural Centre in Siena from 1966, and it analyses the design compared to his contemporary works. It analyses the approach to historically relevant heritage in Alvar Aalto’s work. Through a thorough analysis of archival materials in Italy and in Finland, as well as through direct testimonials from architects involved in the project, this paper traces its development and it explains the reasons for abandoning the initiative as a part of the first complete study on the design.
Redefining Modern Heritage - Jerzy Soltan by Szymon Mateusz Ruszczewski
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Modern Architecture History - Alvar Aalto in Siena by Szymon Mateusz Ruszczewski
The study of Mediterranean piazza comes from the present-day importance given to the open space in architecture, far greater than over fifty years ago. New needs have emerged and new connections were established between architecture and other studies. In the light of this situation, one ponders on the nature of public space in Aalto – its inspirations, its functioning and its issues. In order to answer this problem, it is proposed to focus on these three aspects of public spaces in Aalto’s architecture that are connected to the Mediterranean piazza.
Throughout Aalto’s journeys – memories, sketches and holiday photographs, one can see some interest given to the public space in the Mediterranean countries. This very interest is also underlined by some of his correspondence with his former Italian co-workers.
Aalto’s design of central area plan for Montréal (1964) and his cooperation with Mayerovitch constitutes a great example of study of open public space. Thanks to the copious number of correspondence between two of them and to the different amendments made to the design as the work progressed, it is possible to understand better the important issues that led Aalto in his public space designs. Aalto’s interest in creating a more civic, culturally bound space, altered the initial version of the design proposed by Mayerovitch, without although changing it entirely. Amongst various observations, one of his ideas was to introduce a culminating point of the piazza, a public building – referring clearly to the Mediterranean models. Thanks to his intervention, the complex became a cultural leisure centre and gained a more civic dimension. The example of Montréal and its progressive definition constitutes a way of understanding the reasons behind Aalto’s designs for civic centres.
Another type of public space in Aalto’s architecture is shown by buildings as Finlandia Hall (where the foyer is called piazza). The interest in Mediterranean public space and the rigid Finnish climate forced him to create an indoor space that functions as an exterior public one. A functional parallel between such space and an Italian piazza shows how similar they are.
The final part consists in a series of proposals for the contemporary condition of Alvar Aalto’s public spaces, yielded thanks to the analysis of present-day Mediterranean piazza and its transformation in the last fifty years. Amongst them, a more acute attention towards the pedestrian, various initiatives that make the piazza a more civic space, new elements introduced in the public squares design and the importance of recurring elements. The model of a Mediterranean piazza may influence once more Aalto’s public spaces.
Alvar Aalto on the Tuscany towns
The very charm if the villages and cities in Tuscany lies in their position on the hilltops, rising smoothly along the curves on the land. Such is Siena – one of the most beautiful cities of Tuscany, witness of the life in the contrade and the traditional horse race, palio. A city on top of three hills, full of picturesque narrow streets and lanes, arched passageways, stairs and rough slopes. A city where – also – the disabled have a very hard life.
The problem of Siena, and of handicapped citizens or tourists, is to both appease their requirements and to preserve the historical character of the city. Certainly, it is impossible for a person on a hand-pushed wheelchair to move freely around the historical centre. Some streets are inclined by more than 25 degrees – a physical barrier that cannot be crossed even by the motorized wheelchairs. The problem is then not only to gain access to different buildings (which is difficult, given the deeply-rooted tradition of at least one step at the building entrance), but also to move freely around the city.
Several investments were implemented in order to facilitate the access to the city centre from below, such as a series of escalators. The new moving stairs systems enables elderly people to climb from one of the city gates or from the railway station all the way up to the city centre. However, many of these systems are deprived of a proper lift that is strictly necessary for the disabled. Another issue concerning those systems inside the city centre is their impact on the cityscape. Some of the escalators were carved partly in the rock forming the hills of Siena making them almost invisible and letting them stealth with the rest of the urban tissue. There are although no apparent modern constructions in the centre and it has been closed for traffic from 1966 as the very first European city centre. In fact, no wars in the last centuries and few recent constructions allowed the city to remain nearly intact up to now.
The case of Siena shows an important issue concerning reconciling the needs of the disabled and the preservation of the historical heritage. It is although a common problem in many of historical cities, may it be Perugia, Venice, Rome or others. The purpose of this paper is to gather a series of solutions already operational in some cities and propose new ones that may bring us closer to resolving this problem.
Redefining Modern Heritage - Jerzy Soltan by Szymon Mateusz Ruszczewski
The study of Mediterranean piazza comes from the present-day importance given to the open space in architecture, far greater than over fifty years ago. New needs have emerged and new connections were established between architecture and other studies. In the light of this situation, one ponders on the nature of public space in Aalto – its inspirations, its functioning and its issues. In order to answer this problem, it is proposed to focus on these three aspects of public spaces in Aalto’s architecture that are connected to the Mediterranean piazza.
Throughout Aalto’s journeys – memories, sketches and holiday photographs, one can see some interest given to the public space in the Mediterranean countries. This very interest is also underlined by some of his correspondence with his former Italian co-workers.
Aalto’s design of central area plan for Montréal (1964) and his cooperation with Mayerovitch constitutes a great example of study of open public space. Thanks to the copious number of correspondence between two of them and to the different amendments made to the design as the work progressed, it is possible to understand better the important issues that led Aalto in his public space designs. Aalto’s interest in creating a more civic, culturally bound space, altered the initial version of the design proposed by Mayerovitch, without although changing it entirely. Amongst various observations, one of his ideas was to introduce a culminating point of the piazza, a public building – referring clearly to the Mediterranean models. Thanks to his intervention, the complex became a cultural leisure centre and gained a more civic dimension. The example of Montréal and its progressive definition constitutes a way of understanding the reasons behind Aalto’s designs for civic centres.
Another type of public space in Aalto’s architecture is shown by buildings as Finlandia Hall (where the foyer is called piazza). The interest in Mediterranean public space and the rigid Finnish climate forced him to create an indoor space that functions as an exterior public one. A functional parallel between such space and an Italian piazza shows how similar they are.
The final part consists in a series of proposals for the contemporary condition of Alvar Aalto’s public spaces, yielded thanks to the analysis of present-day Mediterranean piazza and its transformation in the last fifty years. Amongst them, a more acute attention towards the pedestrian, various initiatives that make the piazza a more civic space, new elements introduced in the public squares design and the importance of recurring elements. The model of a Mediterranean piazza may influence once more Aalto’s public spaces.
Alvar Aalto on the Tuscany towns
The very charm if the villages and cities in Tuscany lies in their position on the hilltops, rising smoothly along the curves on the land. Such is Siena – one of the most beautiful cities of Tuscany, witness of the life in the contrade and the traditional horse race, palio. A city on top of three hills, full of picturesque narrow streets and lanes, arched passageways, stairs and rough slopes. A city where – also – the disabled have a very hard life.
The problem of Siena, and of handicapped citizens or tourists, is to both appease their requirements and to preserve the historical character of the city. Certainly, it is impossible for a person on a hand-pushed wheelchair to move freely around the historical centre. Some streets are inclined by more than 25 degrees – a physical barrier that cannot be crossed even by the motorized wheelchairs. The problem is then not only to gain access to different buildings (which is difficult, given the deeply-rooted tradition of at least one step at the building entrance), but also to move freely around the city.
Several investments were implemented in order to facilitate the access to the city centre from below, such as a series of escalators. The new moving stairs systems enables elderly people to climb from one of the city gates or from the railway station all the way up to the city centre. However, many of these systems are deprived of a proper lift that is strictly necessary for the disabled. Another issue concerning those systems inside the city centre is their impact on the cityscape. Some of the escalators were carved partly in the rock forming the hills of Siena making them almost invisible and letting them stealth with the rest of the urban tissue. There are although no apparent modern constructions in the centre and it has been closed for traffic from 1966 as the very first European city centre. In fact, no wars in the last centuries and few recent constructions allowed the city to remain nearly intact up to now.
The case of Siena shows an important issue concerning reconciling the needs of the disabled and the preservation of the historical heritage. It is although a common problem in many of historical cities, may it be Perugia, Venice, Rome or others. The purpose of this paper is to gather a series of solutions already operational in some cities and propose new ones that may bring us closer to resolving this problem.