Born: 25 January 1894, Finland
Died: 13 January 1949
Country most active: Finland
Also known as: Aino Maria Marsio-Aalto, Aino Maria Mandelin
The following is excerpted from Infinite Women creator Allison Tyra’s book Uncredited: Women’s Overlooked, Misattributed, and Stolen Work.
Finnish designer Aino Aalto often stood by while her husband Alvar was given all the recognition for their joint projects, even being dismissed as merely his muse rather than his partner. In their early years, the couple would enter architectural competitions separately, but Alvar was routinely held up as the bar against which Aino’s own work was measured. In 1935, she became co-founder, artistic director, and later managing director of their lighting and furniture company, Artek, in addition to collaborating with her husband on projects that brought only him fame. Like Ray Eames, Aino often did the detail work, with design historian Lucy Ryder Richardson noting, “While Alvar provided the dramatic lead roles, Aino filled in all the gaps to create perfect harmony in everything.” There was also the personality difference. Biographer Siegfried Giedion wrote, “[Alvar] is restless, effervescent, incalculable. Aino was thorough, persevering, and contained. Sometimes it is a good thing when a volcano is encircled by a quietly flowing stream.” The same dynamic is seen in other couples in this book, and the stream is always easy to overlook when the volcano is constantly drawing attention.