Helsinki Marks an International Contribution to Wellbeing with a Summer of Aalto Design and Architecture

HELSINKI, June 8, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Aalto Design – Shapes of Wellbeing exhibition at Architecture & Design Museum Helsinki. Photo: Paavo Lehtonen, Architecture & Design Museum.

• The international influence of Aino, Elissa and Alvar Aalto in progressing the concept of wellbeing within Modernist design and architecture will be explored in a new exhibition at Architecture & Design Museum Helsinki.
• The exhibition is timely, as Aalto's architecture has been proposed for inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The Aalto Works nomination comprises 13 buildings across Finland, that have influenced the development of the Finnish welfare state.
• Five Aalto buildings in Helsinki are part of the Aalto Works nomination, chosen from significant Aalto works across the city – and designed by Aino, Elissa, and Alvar Aalto.
• The newly-refurbished Finlandia Hall offers a permanent exhibition on the lives of and work of the Aaltos, alongside restaurants and short-stay apartment rental opportunities within a living masterpiece completed by the Aaltos.
• Helsinki is an international destination for lovers of architecture and design, with works by the Aaltos sitting alongside classics such as Temppeliaukio Rock Church and the National Romantic masterpieces of Eliel Saarinen, and contemporary buildings by renowned architects including Helsinki-based JKMM Architects.

2026 will see Helsinki mark the contribution of three of the world's most celebrated architects to the creation of the modern welfare state and the concept of wellbeing. Aino, Elissa and Alvar Aalto's architecture is the subject of both a new exhibition at Architecture & Design Museum Helsinki, and a nomination to UNESCO to create a new World Heritage Site.

Opening on 5 June 2026, Aalto Design – Shapes of Wellbeing, is a multidisciplinary exhibition that invites visitors to explore how Aino, Elissa and Alvar Aalto's architecture and design can further contemporary discussions on the design of wellbeing. Aalto Design – Shapes of Wellbeing is based on a concept by Pilvi Kalhama and curated by Petteri Kummala and Jutta Tynkkynen, with Carson Chan as curatorial advisor.

The exhibition highlights wellbeing as the Aaltos' major contribution to Western architectural modernism and examines how their work and philosophy approach wellbeing as a balance between people, nature, the built environment, and materials. It connects the Aaltos' idea of holistic wellbeing with contemporary thinking and the growing desire to understand wellbeing as extending beyond the individual to the whole planet. 

Jutta Tynkkynen, exhibitions curator at Architecture & Design Museum Helsinki, said:

"Aalto Design – Shapes of Wellbeing emerges from a wider context in which architecture is shaped by and contributes to changing ideas of wellbeing across the 20th and 21st centuries."

"The work of the Aaltos was internationally influential in progressing modernism from strict rationalism to something more attuned to emotional and physical comfort. During their era, critics celebrated the "humane" element of the Aalto's work – today we might ask what these classics can contribute to contemporary discussions on the design of wellbeing, a much broader term with the potential to extend beyond individual people to the health of the whole planet."

Aalto Design, Shapes of Wellbeing will explore how the Aaltos advocated for social values through their work, using their international profile to promote a universal idea of wellbeing.

The exhibition will feature an Aalto Lounge, designed by exhibition architect Linda Bergroth, offering a calm space that invites visitors to explore how being in a space affects their body and mind in the presence of authentic Aalto objects. The lounge will also function as an experiential meeting and event space available for hire. An immersive hour-long, three-channel video installation by London-based artist Ilona Sagar will explore the evolving relationships between the body, health and architecture, through footage shot at the Aalto's celebrated Paimio Sanatorium.

Hanna Harris, Chief Design Officer for the City of Helsinki:

"The Aaltos' human-centred approach shows how design can go beyond individual buildings to shape how we experience urban space and everyday life. In Helsinki, design operates at the scale of the city, not only as cultural expression but as an essential part of everyday life. The exhibition can be seen as an invitation to consider Helsinki as a living case study, where architecture and design are working together to shape a more sustainable and enjoyable urban future."
 

Visions of Alvar Aalto exhibition at Finlandia Hall. Photo: Jonna Monola, Finlandia Hall

The Aaltos in Helsinki: a visible and enduring legacy

Aalto Design, Shapes of Wellbeing also speaks to Helsinki's identity as one of the world's leading design cities. Helsinki contains one of the world's most significant concentrations of work by the Aaltos. Many of these buildings are publicly accessible, such as the Aaltos' family home and atelier. This lasting legacy continues to contribute to the Finnish capital's position as a leader in using design to improve quality of life.

Among the finest Aalto buildings in Helsinki is the Finlandia Hall, a monumental concert and congress hall that sits adjacent to the National Museum of Finland and the Parliament House in central Helsinki. The recent refurbishment of the hall strengthened its role an experiential event centre and a fascinating meeting place. It now serves the public more comprehensively than ever with two restaurants, open terraces and a design shop.

The refurbishment also created space for a permanent exhibition, titled Visions of Alvar Aalto, which explores the experience of Finnishness through the lives and work of Aino, Elissa and Alvar Aalto. This exhibition complements the exhibition at Architecture & Design Museum Helsinki by focusing on the human experience of modernism, and how it has both influenced and been influenced by the design of the Aaltos.

Finlandia Hall also opened two short-stay apartments available for rent within the historic building. These apartments have been renovated to capture the atmosphere of a Finnish home and decorated with respect for Aalto's style, combining modern classics with the building's original furniture – offering a perfect accommodation option for those who appreciate design and cultural heritage.

Finaldia Hall is one of the 13 Aalto Works selected for the UNESCO nomination. Photo: Juho Kuva, Finlandia Hall 

UNESCO World Heritage Nomination

Five Aalto works in Helsinki have been selected for inclusion in the Finnish Heritage Agency's serial nomination to UNESCO to create an Aalto Works world heritage site.

The thirteen buildings selected for the UNESCO nomination have been chosen because of the significance of their contribution to the construction of the Finnish national welfare state, and to supporting the wellbeing of communities in a way that has universal significance and impacted the development of modern architecture internationally.

The five Helsinki buildings selected for the nomination are:

1. Aalto House (completed 1936)
2. Studio Aalto (completed 1955)
3. National Pensions Institute KELA (completed 1957)
4. House of Culture (completed in 1958)
5. Finlandia Hall (completed 1971)

The final decision will be made by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee during its meeting in Busan, South Korea, scheduled for 19–27 July 2026.

Jukka Savolainen, Museum Director, Alvar Aalto Foundation:

"Finland's global reputation for high standards of wellbeing isn't automatic or coincidental: Today's Finns benefit from a long tradition of equality, engagement, public health planning and social mobility that stretches back to the early 20^th Century. These are the values of a pioneering welfare state created by a young nation that realised that the main natural resource available to it was its people – so it invested in supportive institutions and the buildings required to house them. 

"The Aaltos' work reflects the progressive values that brought about the Finnish welfare state. Through their hugely significant body of work, they both solidified the ambition of social movements within Finland and exported these values internationally as an influential and widely imitated approach to design."

Johanna Tolonen, CEO at Finlandia Hall:

"Helsinki is a must-visit destination for any architecture lover, and we're particularly blessed with perhaps the most significant concentration of buildings by the Aaltos anywhere in the world. This is the city they called home and their legacy remains part of our daily lives.

"In an era where consensus is hard to achieve, the vision captured by the architecture of the Aaltos reminds us of design's role in bringing people together and in the creation of systems, processes and places that work to elevate every member of our society. This is a legacy that we work hard to live up to in Helsinki – providing our citizens with the space and support to discover their own happiness."

PRESS ENQUIRIES

Please contact:
Ben James, ING Media
[email protected]
+44 (0)7534 970 728

For more information, please visit:

Architecture & Design Museum Helsinki: https://admuseo.fi/
Finlandia Hall: https://www.finlandiatalo.fi/
Aalto Works UNESCO nomination: https://www.alvaraalto.fi/en/alvar-aalto-foundation/alvar-aalto-and-unesco-world-heritage/

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