Finland Proposes Alvar Aalto Sites for UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List
The House of Culture by Alvar Aalto, Helsinki
Photo © Wikimedia Commons user TTKK
Finlandia Hall, Helsinki, by Alvar Aalto
Photo © Wikimedia Commons user Matthias Süßen
Säynätsalo Town Hall by Alvar Aalto
Photo © Wikimedia Commons user Tiia Monto
As a first step in identifying the next UNESCO World Heritage sites, the Finnish Heritage Agency
has updated the country’s tentative proposal list to include 13 buildings designed by early Finnish modernist Alvar Aalto. The agency believes that each structure in the newly proposed collection meets the criteria for Outstanding Universal Values (OUV), a prerequisite for inclusion in the World Heritage List.
The nominated sites throughout Finland are: Studio Aalto, The Aalto House, Finlandia Hall, National Pensions Institute, & House of Culture in Helsinki; Jyväskylä University Campus Area, Muuratsalo Experimental House, & Säynätsalo Town Hall in Jyväskylä; Paimio Sanatorium in Paimio; Seinäjoki Civic Centre in Seinäjoki; Sunila Pulp Mill Residential Area in Kotka; Villa Mairea in Noormarkku; and the Church of the Three Crosses (Vuoksenniska Church), Imatra.
“One guideline was that the series of Aalto sites could possibly be augmented later on with sites outside of Finland if they seamlessly complement the whole,” Alvar Aalto Foundation managing director Tommi Lindh says in a statement.
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