Experiences of the Month

Alvar Aalto’s Paimio Armchair (1931–32) from Pertti Männistö’s Aalto design collection. Pertti Männistö’s collection of Stool 60s.

Aino Marsio-Aalto’s & Alvar Aalto’s Aalto Flower (1939) from Pertti Männistö’s Aalto design collection. Photo: Elina Männistö

Experience of the Month, Finland Private collection on show in seminal Aalto exhibition

100 stools, sun loungers and iconic glassware: the Aino and Alvar Aalto exhibition at Kunsthalle Helsinki promises to display a rare mix of the couple’s works.

By Ester Laiho | Photos: Anssi Vaarola

This September, Kunsthalle Helsinki will launch Aallot – an exhibition of works by Aino and Alvar Aalto, as seen through the eyes of a collector. The unique selection will feature never-seen-before prototypes and other true collector’s items.

For Aallot, curator Eeva Holkeri had the unique opportunity to pick items from the world’s largest private collection of Aalto artefacts. The collector, Pertti Männistö, started collecting Aalto items in the early 1990s and owns over 1,000 Aalto objects.

Holkeri and her team had the difficult job of whittling down this enormous cache to some 400 Aalto items, to fit the 550 square-metre exhibition space at Kunsthalle Helsinki. Inside the purpose-built gallery, extra care is taken to utilise the building’s big windows for their natural light to accentuate display works. Aalto in a new light Holkeri is most excited about a rattan sun lounger made by Aino Marsio-Aalto: “I love the chair since it comes out of left field in the context of how people expect an Aalto item to look.”

Holkeri felt the need to have objects specifically from Aino, as Alvar is so often the one remembered and credited. “When it comes to the couple’s architecture, Alvar is often named as the creator. Luckily, when it comes to their artefacts, it is quite easy to tell who made it, since they had their own styles. We have taken extra care to make sure we have a good selection of Aino’s works on display,” she reveals.

The exhibition opens on 10 September and will run until 23 October. During this time, visitors can see how the pair’s design developed through the years, from experimenting with bending wood for the famous Stool 60, to the evolution of the armchair.

One of the chairs on display is the Paimio Armchair that Alvar Aalto invented in 1931, while he was designing the Paimio Sanatorium with Aino. Some of the chairs can still be seen in their original places at the Sanatorium, whilst some will now be exhibited at Kunsthalle Helsinki.

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Experience of the Month, Denmark Up close: Denmark’s native whales in their natural habitat

Have you ever seen a whale? At Fjord & Bælt, visitors have a rare chance to get up close to one of the world’s smallest species of whale. The centre – a combined tourism attraction and marine research institution – is lifting the curtain on its world-leading research into whale behaviour.

By Lena Hunter | Photos: Ard Jongsma

“It may sound unlikely, but Denmark’s waters have the highest concentration of whales in the world – around 100,000 –because of the large population of harbour porpoises,” explains Fjord & Bælt’s communications director Mads Dirckinck-Holmfeld. Located in picturesque Kerteminde Harbour on the Danish island of Fyn, the centre is uniquely placed to observe harbour porpoises, harbour seals, and many species of fish in their natural habitat.

“How do offshore projects, shipping and ferry transport, sonar systems from ships and military and wind-turbines affect marine mammals? Whales navigate and hunt via sonar and sound travels 4.5 times faster underwater, so these activities have a huge impact. We work closely with the University of Southern Denmark and the Marine Biology Research Centre in Kerteminde on research that is used to inform infrastructure projects and environmental law, to improve the conditions of marine mammals in Denmark and elsewhere in the world,” explains Dirckinck-Holmfeld.

Meet the world’s oldest porpoise “The centre is open to the public so people can come down, see what we do and learn about our work,” he continues. Fjord & Bælt runs exhibitions, school services and educational activities for visitors keen to get up close to marine life – but its main attractions are the three harbour porpoises, kept in a closed part of Kerteminde Harbour. “It’s not an aquarium – they’re living in their natural habitat, allowing for natural water and air temperatures, and they can hunt for live fish as they would in the wild,” says Dirckinck-Holmfeld.

“This year is our 25-year anniversary. One of our porpoises, Freja, is 27 years old – older than Fjord & Bælt! She is the longest living captive porpoise in the world. In the wild, their lifespan is between five and seven years.”

Harbour porpoises are highly-intelligent, often mythologised creatures – and Fjord & Bælt offers a rare chance to observe them up close: here, visitors can meet Freja by walking through a stunning under-sea tunnel. “You can see how the animals swim around down there. We also have feedings and trainings three times a day for the public, and guests can come and meet the researchers and the trainers,” says Dirckinck-Holmfeld. “Our mission is to motivate nature conservation through experience, entertainment, inspiration and understanding.”

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