projects and articles by members
Everyday environment / Workshop
First became art
In accordance with Alvar Aalto's own wishes, the Alvar Aalto Museum started operations primarily as a venue for exhibiting contemporary art. The Museum's art education activities started up in the 1970s with workshops of various kinds. At that stage there were no specific spaces where workshops could be held, so the activities were transferred to the Jyväskylä art school which was set up for that purpose in 1986.
Art and Architecture
In the late 1980s, there was a decisive change in direction at the Museum. The steadily increasing reputation of Alvar Aalto's architecture generated a need to exhibit architecture more widely. The first basic exhibition dealing with Alvar Aalto's architecture was opened in 1989. Alongside the basic exhibition, a start was made on providing architectural education for children and young people. The following general principles were set for the Museum's pedagogics: to increase tolerance in general, to strengthen personal experience and sensation, and to communicate the importance of art and architecture. Specific aims for architectural education were registered as: to take account of the surrounding milieu, to increase activity in issues related to the built environment, to understand the intellectual world of architecture and to spread the word about Alvar Aalto and his buildings.
Another form of activity has been a series of real environmental projects that have studied the problems of school playgrounds and school premises and designed and implemented improvements in them. These have been organised in collaboration with day-care centres and schools. A professional from the appropriate discipline has always been hired separately to run these projects, be they architects, designers or even lighting designers.
Contemporary policy
The City of Jyväskylä's architectural policy programme was drawn up in 2002. One of the goals set for it was to draw up a development programme for architectural education. The idea is to include teaching on architecture as part of the curriculum in comprehensive schools and secondary level educational institutions using the programme drawn up by the Alvar Aalto Museum. The programme has progressed to the operational level and a very comprehensive network of contacts has been created. In implementing the programme, the goal has been to take into account supplementary training for teachers and architectural education of a very general nature alongside projects aimed at the young. The overall aim is to increase understanding of architecture not only as a part of society and its history, but also as a part of the everyday life and mental pictures of private individuals.
Beyond architecture
Alvar Aalto's complex and considered architecture is an excellent vehicle for architectural education. We take the view that the basis for architectural education is to seize the moment and influence things now. Each period creates the architecture of its own time and in its own image. How and why does that happen and what does the architecture tell us about the time and contemporary ideals?
