Aino and Alvar Aalto, a Shared History

It is by now obvious that the most important and innovative modernization of Finnish society included a great deal of work by early educated women in different fields of arts. In this respect, one should note that there are still areas in Aino Marsio-Aalto’s oeuvre which require more scholarly research.

As the Aalto furniture of the Artek firm was from the beginning a certain kind of “brand”,  it should also be treated as such,  with different authorships behind the designed objects. Research along these lines provides a possibility to explore how the Aaltos worked for this firm and for a new way of living – and also how they saw the hierarchies of economic issues. The story until now has not been free of other kinds of hierarchies concerning production and authorship.

Renja Suominen-Kokkonen