| Considered one of the 20th century’s foremost designers, Finnish architect Alvar Aalto is known for structures that combine function with grace and beauty. Aalto also applied his design ideas to furniture, creating simple pieces often made entirely of laminated wood. After spending most of the 1940s in the United States as a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Aalto returned to Finland in 1948 to help rebuild his native country following World War II. |