The Aalto Vase Takes Architectural Form at Helsinki Design Week

Alvar Aalto’s Aalto Vase turns 90 this year, and its familiar form takes on a new scale to mark the anniversary. Standing seven metres tall, the Aalto 90 Pavilion translates the iconic form of the Aalto Vase from glassware into architecture, while exploring how form, new materials and reusable structures can be brought together in contemporary design.

Designed by Alvar Aalto in 1936, the Aalto Vase receives a new interpretation at Helsinki Design Week, where its organic form is transformed into a seven-metre-high pavilion. First presented at 3daysofdesign in Copenhagen in June, the structure combines Aalto’s design legacy with contemporary material technology and a new spatial experience.

The pavilion is a collaboration between Iittala and Hydro, designed by Lars Beller Fjetland and Copenhagen-based TABLEAU CPH. Made from low-carbon aluminium, the structure is designed to be dismantled and reassembled, allowing the pavilion to travel from one event to another.

From Object to Space

In the pavilion, the Aalto Vase is no longer experienced simply as an object, but as a space. Visitors can step inside its form and experience its curves through movement and scale. Material and sound further contribute to a multisensory environment.

The pavilion combines Aalto’s organic design language with contemporary material technology. Its structure is made from Hydro’s low-carbon REDUXA aluminium, produced using renewable energy at Hydro’s Sunndal plant in Norway. According to Hydro, the material has a carbon footprint of no more than 4.0 kilograms of CO₂ equivalent per kilogram of aluminium, less than one-third of the global average. The aluminium profiles were manufactured at Hydro’s Magnor production facility in Norway.

The choice of material is also closely linked to the pavilion’s lifecycle. The structure has been designed to be dismantled and reassembled, rather than serving as a one-off installation. Aluminium’s light weight, strength and recyclability are integral to the design.

The project also raises a broader question about the design of temporary architecture: what happens when an event structure is designed from the outset to be dismantled, transported and reused? In the Aalto 90 Pavilion, the material lifecycle is considered alongside form and user experience as an integral part of the design.

The Aalto Vase Turns 90

The pavilion forms part of the 90th anniversary celebrations of the Aalto Vase. Although the design dates to 1936, the vase was first presented at the 1937 Paris World’s Fair. To mark the anniversary, Iittala has also launched the Aalto 90 City Vase collection, inspired by six international design cities: Helsinki, Tokyo, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, New York and Berlin.

In Copenhagen, the City Vase collection formed part of the pavilion’s spatial experience, creating a cohesive environment together with the architectural structure.

In Helsinki, the Pavilion Becomes an Exhibition Space

At Helsinki Design Week, the pavilion takes on a new role as the setting for a photography exhibition by Arno Rafael Minkkinen, presented as part of Iittala’s The Spirit of Aalto project. The exhibition brings together selected photographs from Minkkinen’s archive, spanning more than five decades, with new works created specifically for the project.

The pavilion’s new use continues the idea of interpreting form across different media. In Helsinki, the Aalto Vase is once again experienced not simply as an object, but as a starting point for photography and a spatial experience.

The Aalto 90 Pavilion will be located at Lyypekinlaituri, next to Helsinki’s Old Market Hall, from 28 August to 6 September 2026 as part of Helsinki Design Week. Admission is free.

Photo: The iconic form of Alvar Aalto’s Aalto Vase takes on a new scale as a seven-metre-high pavilion at Helsinki Design Week. Photo: Fiskars Group