Alvar Aalto Libraries

Jari and Sirkkaliisa Jetsonen's monograph on the libraries of Alvar Aalto presents all 18 of his completed libraries as well as the Academic Bookstore. Chronologically the sites range from Viipuri Library in the 1930s to Alajärvi Library in the 1990s, which was realised after Aalto's death. Some of the libraries are part of larger administrative or cultural centres. In an introductory essay, Teija Isohauta writes about Aalto's unrealised library projects. Aalto's libraries have served various needs. Some of them are public libraries, such as those in Seinäjoki, Rovaniemi and Wolfsburg. The libraries at the University of Jyväskylä, Helsinki University of Technology and the Mount Angel monastery are scholarly libraries. The libraries in private houses such as Villa Mairea and Maison Carré, offered a tranquil work space. The book also describes the changes in use that the libraries have undergone. In the libraries it was important to create spaces for different kinds of functions and