Alvar aalto architect. Volume 16. jyväskylä university 1951-71

Aalto, Alvar ; Laaksonen, Esa ; Hipeli, Mia
ISBN 978-952-5498-10-3
2009

Alvar Aalto designed the Jyväskylä College of Education, nowadays the University of Jyväskylä, as an addition to the campus area, following an invited competition held in 1951. Aalto was alresdy familiar with the varied terrain of the lake-side town from his chilhood and school years. In his plands the new buildings are situadet amidst the existing buildings of the teacher seminary dating from the end ofthe 19th century.

In her article Acropolis in the Pine Forest Päivi Lukkarinen focuses on the cultural background factors to the design and the first stages ofthe construction of the buildings following the planning competition.

In her article The Park Area for Jyväskylä Campus Mari Forsber discusses the importance for Aalto of the totality comprising the earlier building stock and the surrounding park - the campus was indeed built in the middle of the arboretum and teaching garden, created in the 1890s, that was central to the teacher training.

The college of education became a university in 1966. Kristo Vesikansa’s article Seminaarinmäki  Campus after Alvar Aalto presents the buildings complited since the 1970s designed by architects other than Alvar Aalto. The changing needs to the building stock offlie academic milieu have been multifaceted, as the functions have diversified and the number of students has increased.

The book also includes all the previously unpublished material for Alvar Aalto’s "URBS" proposal from 1951, including the competition drawings as well as photographs of the model and Aalto's competition report.

The Works section of the book, compiled by Katariina Pakoma and Mia Hipeli, presents a selection of buildings and unrealised projrcts by the Aalto office contemporary with the design of the University of Jyväskylä.