Alvar Aalto was one of the twentieth century’s defining architects. Yet through his use of organic form and natural material, he speaks today at the beginning of the twenty-first century. The use of wood, a favorite material in his architectural finishes, was both groundbreaking and visionary. As an architectural surface, wood was part of a unique style which both helped define modernism and yet transcended it. Through his use of wood ceilings in a modern architectural context, Aalto truly deserves to be called the father of the suspended wood ceiling.
Aalto’s background, his humanist philosophy, and his views on nature all drew him toward the use of wood in an architectural age better defined with glass, steel, and concrete. His libraries in particular display an innovative use of wood in ceiling design. The library at the Mount Angel Benedictine Abbey (in Oregon, USA) is a powerful case study of Aalto’s use of wood ceilings.
The abbey library was Aalto’s final example of library architecture. The library’s wood ceilings illustrate Aalto’s mature vision for wood as an architectural finish, with wood grilles adding a natural element to the curvaceous concrete of the main ceiling. The Mount Angel library is a worthy case study of both Aalto’s design philosophy and his use of wood ceilings in his architecture.
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