Turku 700: the fair that brought modernism

In 1929 two young architects, Alvar Aalto and Erik Bryggman, built a fair in Turku with flat roofs, white walls and bold signs. It was one of the first glimpses in the Nordic countries of a new style: functionalism, or funkis.

Functionalism · Republic

The big story

Turku 700: the fair that brought modernism

For a few years around 1930, Turku was the most modern place in Finnish architecture. Alvar Aalto moved his office there, and together with the local architect Erik Bryggman he brought a new style from Europe: buildings without ornament, with flat roofs, white walls and big windows. People called it functionalism, or simply funkis.

Aalto comes to Turku

A competition win. In 1927 Alvar Aalto won the competition for the building of the Southwest Finland Agricultural Cooperative in Turku. He moved his office from Jyväskylä to Turku, and the building was finished in 1928 Well documented.
A partner. Before moving, the Aaltos had contacted the Turku architect Erik Bryggman. From 1927 the two worked together and became pioneers of modern architecture in Finland Well documented.
The Aalto family. Alvar’s wife, Aino Aalto, was also an architect. They had married in 1924, and their son Hamilkar was born in 1928, during the Turku years Well documented.
Off to Helsinki. Aalto’s office moved to Helsinki in 1933 Well documented.

Erik Bryggman, a Turku architect

Born in Turku. Erik Bryggman was born in Turku on 7 February 1891 and died there on 21 December 1955. He opened his own office in Turku in the early 1920s and was one of the first Finnish functionalists Well documented.
All over town. His Turku buildings include the Atrium apartment house (1925–27), the Olympia cinema (1926), the Hospits Betel hotel (1926–29), Hotel Seurahuone (1927–28), the Åbo Akademi library extension (1934–35) and the Kåren student union building (1935–36) Well documented.
A chapel and a castle. One of his best-known works is the Resurrection Chapel at the Turku cemetery (1938–41). He also led the restoration of Turku Castle from 1939 to 1955, work that went on after the castle was damaged in the war (stop 39) Well documented.

The fair of 1929

A joint work. The Turku Fair of 1929 was designed by Aalto and Bryggman together. It is their best-known joint work Well documented.
700 years? The fair was held 700 years after the papal letter of 1229 (stop 2), and it is often linked with that anniversary. We could not confirm its official name, its exact place or how many people visited Debated.
Ahead of Stockholm. The fair is often said to have anticipated the modernism of the great Stockholm Exhibition of 1930, though it was much smaller. Aalto and Bryggman had visited Stockholm while planning it. Historians also see the influence of Russian Constructivism Well documented.
Temporary. Like most fairs, it was built to be taken down afterwards. Its ideas stayed in the buildings that followed Likely.

The Turun Sanomat building

A newspaper house. Aalto designed the building of the Turun Sanomat newspaper at Kauppiaskatu 5 in central Turku. Its forms were inspired by the French-Swiss architect Le Corbusier Well documented.
A giant window. At street level it had a display window two storeys high, so that people in the street could see into the newspaper house Well documented.
When? It was designed in 1928. Sources give the completion as 1929 or 1930 Debated.
Protected. The Turun Sanomat building, the Agricultural Cooperative building and Aalto’s Standard apartment house are all on Finland’s list of nationally important built environments and on the Docomomo list of key modernist sites Well documented.

How do we know?

The buildings themselves still stand, and the Alvar Aalto Foundation and architecture books describe them. The fair is harder: it was taken down, and we found only short mentions in the biographies of the two architects. Its place, dates, visitor numbers and official name still need checking in Turku’s own archives.

1920s ClassicismFunkis, about 1930

Drag the slider or tap a feature.

What makes a building funkis? Drag the slider to turn a classical facade into a functionalist one.A generic drawing, not a likeness of any real building. The features are a simplified summary of the style.

Why it matters

Functionalism changed how Finland was built for decades: schools, hospitals, offices and flats became lighter, plainer and more practical. Aalto became one of the most famous architects in the world, and his first modern works stand in Turku. When you walk past the Turun Sanomat building, you are looking at the start of that story.

On the lighter side

Funkis furniture and the new way to live

The new style was not only about buildings. Architects also designed what went inside them: chairs, lamps, tables and beds. One chair, designed for a hospital near Turku, became famous around the world and is still made today.

A hospital for the lungs

Paimio Sanatorium. Alvar and Aino Aalto designed the Paimio Sanatorium, a hospital for tuberculosis patients in Paimio in the Turku region. The design work took place in 1929–32 Well documented.
Everything designed. The Aaltos designed much of its furniture and lamps too, thinking about how sick patients would use them Well documented.
Light and air. Functionalist architects believed that sunlight, fresh air and clean, simple rooms were good for health. A sanatorium, where patients rested for months, was the perfect place to try these ideas Likely.

The Paimio chair

For breathing. The Paimio armchair of 1932 was made for the sanatorium’s patients. The angle of its back was thought to be ideal for their lungs, to make breathing easier Well documented.
Bent plywood. Seat and back are one sheet of plywood, bent into curls at both ends. Aalto developed bent-plywood furniture in 1932 and patented the technique in 1933 Well documented.
Wood, not steel. Many modern chairs of the time were made of steel tubes. Aalto chose birch, which felt warmer to touch Likely.

From Turku to the world

London. In 1933 Aalto’s furniture was a success at the Fortnum & Mason department store in London Well documented.
Artek. In 1935 Alvar Aalto, Aino Aalto, Maire Gullichsen and Nils-Gustav Hahl founded the company Artek to sell the furniture. The Paimio chair has been made ever since Well documented.
New York. In 1938 the chair had pride of place at an Aalto exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York Well documented.
Still made near Turku. Aalto furniture is still made by the Korhonen furniture factory in the Turku region, Artek’s traditional manufacturer Well documented.

Tap the numbers on the chair, then the years below.

From a sanatorium to New York

The Paimio armchair of 1932. Tap the numbers on the chair, then follow its journey from the sanatorium to New York.Simplified side view, not a technical drawing.

How do we know?

The chair is still made and sold, and Artek tells its history. Aalto’s life and works are described in many books. The ideas behind functionalist homes, light, air and practical furniture, are general architectural history; we did not find sources on how ordinary Turku families furnished their homes around 1930.

Why it matters

The Paimio chair shows that good design can start from a very practical problem: helping sick people breathe. Finnish design later became famous for simple, useful and beautiful objects, and much of that reputation began with Aalto’s furniture, first made for buildings in and around Turku.

Sources and further reading

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