NOTES

PAIMIO CHAIRS OF ALVAR AALTO

🔘 What are the specific objects/buildings/ cities (or areas) you're looking at? Why have
you chosen these?

Piamio Chair (also called as armchair-41) was specially designed for TuberCulosis patients to sit
comfortably. It promotes the functionalism (which helps the user to sit and breathe comfortably
because of its bend design).

🔘 What are you going to tell us about them?

DESIGN

FUNCTION

MASS PRODUCTION

🔘 What are the connections you are hoping or looking to make while researching this
topic?

>> paimio sanatorium :: a hospital designed by him for TB patients in Finland. The setting and
the design is in accordance with their treatment requirements.

🔘 What is it that makes this topic interesting for you?

This design was his beginning to the furniture design. Which mainly concentrated on the
function and then the beauty. Even if Aalto was famous for his architecture work, his furniture
design was well thought in functionalism and production. Like the Model 60 stacking wooden
chair, bar chair.

🔘 How will you go about telling us this? What is the logical flow of your essay?
⇒ Introduction of the design and the designer
⇒ Elaboration of the object (the way it is designed)
⇒ The purpose of the design and history behind the design.
⇒ Small description of alvar aalto, the designer ( from architect to even a furniture designer)
⇒ short description on the hospital where the design was first introduced
⇒ Including the important points from vol 5 in the book of alvar aalto
⇒ Based on how well the design promoted among the people

THE CHAIR LAUNCHED BY AN ARCHITECT

INTRODUCTION

The Paimio chair was designed by Ar.Alvar Aalto for the project of Paimio sanatorium in
Finland. It was also called as armchair- 41 which is made out of organic elements. It is an
environmentally designed cantilevered chair. It highlights in following the function before the
design in the period of the 1930's. This chair is true example of sculptural beauty and comfort.It
was one among the furniture piece which was produced in a bulk quantity in the markets.

THE GENIUS DESIGN

Instead of using metal tubes, Aalto chose eco-friendly materials with warmth and smoothness.
The materials used are bent plywood, bent laminated birch and solid birch. The chair keeps up a
modernism in furniture design. In which the seat attached to the frame of wood appears to be
floating and it remains perfectly balanced. To some extent, it was a modification of cantilevered
chairs. The bent plywood is welded in such a way that it does not break with its narrow factor.
OBJECTIVES IN DESIGNING

It was specially designed for Tuberculosis patients to sit comfortably. It mainly promotes the
functionalism then on the beauty. Besides the aesthetical view, the primary function it intended
was to help the user to sit and breathe comfortably because of the back angle of the armchair. It
is light in structure as well as the weight. Here he efficiently follows the principle of “function
follows form”. These days this principle exhibits the modernism in designing. The functionality
is a necessary factor which influences the positioning of the design economically effective like
the user interest, etc. The importance of the design was emphasised in the function of the Paimio
chairs although the well-being of tuberculosis patients was primary. It underlines the strict
geometry and even lacks in ornamentation. The material used provides the smoothness with no
poking of wooden carpentry and with no adhesive upholstery

INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION AND THE IMPACT

The quality of the structure and the materials used varied, since it was introduced in the late
1930’s. The chair scores in the triumph in machine made construction. At first the patent right of
production were given to Otto Korhonen’s factories then to the Artek company in Finland. Aalto
mainly focussed on producing articles for the purpose of industrial production. Since it worked
on functionality with the machines, the impact among people was good enough to lead the
production till now. The materials used are also cost effective, easily produced and rationally
modern which advanced the production of the chair massively. Aalto’s armchair had a great
influence on the American designers namely Charles and Ray Eames.

THE CHAIR IN THE SANATORIUM

The chair was mainly designed to introduce in the project Paimio sanatorium which was also by
Alvar Aalto. The building is considered as a pinnacle of International Modernism. The building
is encouraged to a tuberculosis treatment centre. In which all the facilities were produced
accordingly with the hygienic and health giving factor for the patients. Such as the lighting effect
and the open air for the ailment of disease and the building was isolated among the pine forest.
Plotting out this building with its use is an important role played by Aalto. The construction crew
made all effort to use domestically produced building materials and local labour for the building.
In the beginning when imported steels where only used for the window frame, Aalto chose wood
for the window. Since steel were much expensive. The lighting and furniture design included can
be linked with the concepts of both mass production and of a complete artwork. Most of them
were specially introduced for this building. The aesthetical design brought here improved the
patient’s vitality and psychological well-being which was stressed by the physicians and the
architect. The architecture of Paimio Sanatorium can also be seen in the light of gender theory.

Aalto's wide field of design activity ranges from city planning and architecture. It has been
estimated that during his entire career Aalto designed over 500 individual buildings,
approximately 300 of which were built, the vast majority of which are in Finland. The Paimio
chair was his first furniture design being an architect. The chair was placed in the patient’s
lounge hall in the sanatorium.