Alvar Aalto was a famous architect from Finland. He was born in Alajarvi, Finland in 1888. He graduated from Helsinki University of Technology in 1909. He started his career as a draftsman and was a teacher of architecture at the Helsinki School of Arts from 1913-15
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In 1915, he opened his own architectural office, Aalto & Söderlind. He became professor at the Helsinki School of Architecture in 1932 and later taught at the Harvard Graduate School of Design as well as art history at the University of Oslo.
In 1951, he designed a house for his cousin which became known as the Aalto house. It has been called "the most beautiful house in America" by "Life" magazine.
In 1952, he designed a furniture factory for his son Jorma Aalto who used to make his furniture with wood from a forest on the island of Kauppiainen. It was one of the first factories to use light weight, high strength plywood for furniture construction, which revolutionized furniture manufacturing. His furniture is known worldwide and his works are included in many important museums around the world.
Today, many factories make furniture using Aalto's techniques.
Aalto died on September 23, 1976 in Helsinki, Finland.