Encounters with Aalto 2014

Ola Kolehmainen and Paul Jackson in collaboration with Artek


Jacksons is pleased to announce "Encounters with Aalto", an exhibition that celebrates the living legacy of Finnish architect and designer Alvar Aalto. In the exhibition, three different historical layers merge to elaborate on Aalto’s principles concerning transparency, translucence, and reflection.

The first layer is a rare and early selection of original Aalto furniture from Jacksons, which includes some of his most emotive uses of bent wood. They exude a sculptural simplicity that reveal their character and charm after having “lived” through the decades.

Accenting the Jacksons pieces are several series of new Pendant Lamps A110, designed in 1952 and still produced by Artek—the company Aalto had founded in 1935. Today, Artek is renowned for its innovative contributions to modern design by building on the heritage of Aalto.

The third layer consists of three large-scale abstract photographic works by contemporary artist Ola Kolehmainen. Two of the works–Library 2 and Villa 1–activate the Alvar Aalto archives by abstracting original material.