Alvar Aalto - Second Nature

Saturday, February 16 - Sunday, April 14

[Closed]
Mondays (except April 8.)
[Opening Hours]
10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
*Fridays: Until 8:00 p.m.
*Last admission 30 minutes before closing time
[Admission Fee]
Adults (at the door): 1,200 yen,
high school and university students (at the door): 1,000 yen
Adults (advance ticket): 1,000 yen,
high school and university students (advance ticket): 800 yen
* Junior high school students and younger: Free.
* For groups of 20 or more, admission fees are 800 yen for adults and 600 yen for high school and university students.
*Persons with a disability certificate or similar receive a 100 yen discount on tickets purchased at the door, and one accompanying helper is admitted free.

Tickets can be purchased from:
Tokyo Station Gallery (up until 30 minutes before the gallery closes),
Lawson Ticket (L-code=34765), E Plus, CN Playguide, and Seven Ticket
* Advance tickets are on sale from December 20, 2018 to February 15, 2019.
* Advance tickets are on sale at the Tokyo Station Gallery reception desk until January 20, on days when the gallery is open.
[Enjoy architecture! A special discount for two exhibitions]
When you purchase a ticket for this exhibition at the door, you can get a 100 yen discount if you show a ticket (or ticket stub) for the Le Corbusier and the Age of Purism exhibition at The National Museum of Western Art in Ueno, held from February 19 to May 19, 2019. You can also get a 100 yen discount for that exhibition if you show the ticket (or ticket stub) for this Aalto exhibition.
* This only applies to the purchase of a same-day ticket at the venue
* Valid for one person per ticket or ticket stub
* This offer cannot be used in tandem with any other discounts
[Organized by]
Tokyo Station Gallery (East Japan Railway Culture Foundation), The Yomiuri Shimbun, The Japanese Association of Art Museums
[With the sponsorship by]
Lion Corporation, Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd., Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Insurance Inc., inter office ltd.
[With the cooperation of]
Lufthansa German Airlines, Lufthansa Cargo AG
[With the support of]
Embassy of Finland, The Finnish Institute in Japan

Flyer PDF

Alvar Aalto (1898-1976) is an iconic Finnish architect whose designs range from private houses to public buildings, and include such works as Villa Mairea, Tuberculosis Sanatorium in Paimio, and Viipuri (Vyborg) Library. He was meticulous about detail and, in addition to the architecture, would design the furniture and other furnishings, right down to wall tiles and doorknobs. The product designs he worked on, which include armchairs, stools, lights and streamlined glassware, are now so well-known around the world that one could say that they are a symbol of Finnish design.
Aalto’s works are grounded in humanism, in the wish to enrich people’s lives, and he also incorporated the organic forms he discovered in the abundant natural landscapes of Finland into his buildings and designs. No doubt that is why, when we encounter his buildings and designs, we can sense some kind of ‘second nature’ in their affinity with their surroundings, and in their harmony of space and light.
This international travelling exhibition has been curated by the Vitra Design Museum and the Alvar Aalto Museum. It started out in Germany and was then held in Spain, Denmark, Finland and France, before coming to Japan in 2018, 120 years after Aalto was born. It is his first solo exhibition here in last 20 years. Be sure not to miss this chance to rediscover the fascination of Alvar Aalto!

A Brief Chronology of Alvar Aalto’s Life

1898
Born in Kuortane, in Midwestern Finland Province.
1921
Graduated from the Helsinki University of Technology.
1923
Opened an architectural office in Jyväskylä.
1929
Met László Moholy-Nagy, Walter Gropius and Le Corbusier at the 2nd Congrès International d'Architecture Moderne (CIAM).
1933
Tuberculosis Sanatorium in Paimio completed.
1935
Founded Artek with his wife Aino and friends. This company aimed to establish a global presence while marketing products such as furniture and showcasing modern art from other countries.
1937
Designed the Finnish Pavilion for Paris Exposition.
1938
Held a solo exhibition at the MOMA in New York.
1939
Designed the Finnish Pavilion for New York World’s Fair.
1943
Elected chairman of the Association of Finnish Architects, a position he held until 1958.
1946
Became a guest professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
1954
The Aalto summer house, also known as the Experimental House, completed.
1956
Designed the Finnish Pavilion for Venice Biennale.
1957
The National Pensions Institute in Helsinki completed.
1959
Maison Louis Carré in the Paris suburbs completed.
1963
Awarded Gold Medal from the American Institute of Architects.
Became president of the Academy of Finland.
1971
Finlandia Hall in Helsinki completed.
1976
Died in Helsinki (at the age of 78).
During the course of a more than 50-year career, Aalto was involved in around 500 designs and projects in Finland and other countries.

The items on display

Original drawings (approx. 50 items)
Architectural models (approx. 15 items)
Furniture, lights, glassware, and other products (approx. 50 items)
Material samples for Wall tiles, door knobs, furniture and etc. (approx. 30 items)
Documents such as books, photographs and video (approx. 80 items)
Photographic works by the German photographer Armin Linke (approx. 60 items)