Inside the Villa Mairea

Art, Design and Interior Architecture

Kirsi Gullichsen and Ulla Kinnunen

In the autumn of 1936, Finnish art patrons and industrialists Maire and Harry Gullichsen asked their friends, Alvar and Aino Aalto, to design a home for them. The design process turned into a vivid interaction between architects and clients, and the resulting residence, Villa Mairea, became one of the masterpieces of 20th-century Modernist architecture and design. It also became a lifelong project for Maire Gullichsen, the house’s namesake. This huge, extensively illustrated book documents the interiors of Villa Mairea, built in 1938-39. This volume focuses on the rich world of works of art, design objects, furniture, light fittings and textiles inside the walls of the house. “It is the inside story of Maire Gullichsen’s lifelong effort to create a setting where art and furnishings are in a subtle dialogue with the architectural design of the villa,” writes the Gullichsen’s son, Kristian, who grew up in the house. As one friend of Aalto’s said, “This is not a house, this is a love poem.” Inside the Villa Mairea includes design drawings and recent photos of the home and its crafts, artworks and furniture, down to the music room, books, silverware and kitchenware. There’s also a wealth of family snapshots and vintage photos – the shot of the built-in glassware storage in the dining room alone would cause serious cravings in any collector of mid-century-modern housewares. With outstanding essays by architect Kristian Gullichsen, artist Carolus Enckell, interior designer Ben af Schultén and art historian Renja Suominen-Kokkonen.

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