A study on Alvar Aalto and his experimentation in Villa Mairea.

Abstract

Modem architecture has often been understood under one style or -ism, and therefore the pictures were inevitably oversimplified and sometimes distorted with prejudices. However, if we look into one building, we come to face many conflicting testimonies with the asserted manifesto. For this reason, it is essential to excavate each design project as deeply as possible in order to reveal the richness and diversity of modem architecture. Eventually, it will lay more steadfast foundation of architectural historiography. As one small step of the work, this thesis aims at exploring the Villa Mairea project (1937-39) by Alvar Aalto (1898-1976).
The Villa Mairea, for the clients Maire and Harry Gullichsen, has been regarded as one of the most important house designs in modem architectural history. Through an extensive collaboration with the clients, Aalto considered the house as an experimental laboratory, in which he could re-examine his established architectural concepts and possibilities for his later career. Owing to the experimental spirit, the design had come through various early versions with a number of drawings that show numerous and complex ideas. By analYSing the drawings, I made a chronological order of each design stage and produced computer 3D models of them. This thesis also investigates Aalto's experiments in the design. I categorised them into three: experiment with typo-morphology; with space; and with reconciliation of polarities, and researched their meaning in architecture. Additionally, I dealt with Aalto's collective housing designs because he argued that the experimental spirit in the Villa Mairea could be applied to mass-produced housing. They show 'Existenz-Maximum' that illustrates 'new individualism', which is also the character of Hans Scharoun's housing projects.
Through this study, the depth of (modem) architecture became for me better illuminated. 'By advancing from one work to the next', we need to continually excavate the treasure of meaning in architecture.

Metadata

Awarding institution:	University of Sheffield
Academic Units:	The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > School of Architecture (Sheffield)
Identification Number/EthosID:	uk.bl.ethos.421130
Depositing User:	EThOS Import Sheffield
Date Deposited:	16 Sep 2019 12:06
Last Modified:	16 Sep 2019 12:06
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID):	oai:etheses.whiterose.ac.uk:14681

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