Whereas many European designers exalted the revolution of the machines, Scandinavian artists turned to nature. Alvar Aalto was one of the trend-setters with his Savoy vase including the typical natural Aalto shapes – waves – that also appeared in the shape of the walls of the Finnish pavilion at the World Exhibition in New York in 1939, in the architecture of the Schauspielhaus in Duesseldorf etc. The Aalto bowl is based on the design of the Savoy vase.
Aalto was convinced that design has to be human in its smallest details.
At iittala’s request, Alvar Aalto created the Aalto vase in different shapes, sizes and colours for the World Exhibition in Paris in 1937. Alvar Aalto was the son of a cartographer – maybe the shapes of the vase are based on Finnish landscapes and lakes.
The timeless Aalto collection ranks among the most famous glass objects all over the world; it is a synonym for Finnish glass art and the manufacturer Iittala. Moreover, it is currently being exhibited in the most important design museums.
