Klaus and Elina Aalto have been bouncing ideas off each other
since they were students at the University of Art and Design
Helsinki, but they had never formally collaborated on a project
until 2009, when they decided to build a bunk bed for their two
young children; it is a modular design inspired by tree houses.
Even though the Aaltos (no relation to Alvar) have fielded
interest from various companies, the bed remains a prototype—
an obstacle Elina attributes to the dearth of Finnish companies
manufacturing high-end products. A notable exception is the
boutique factory Selki-Asema—it operates out of a converted
ce
Selki-Asema,
a Finnish company
that champions
young designers,
produces Klaus
Aalto’s City Boy, a
personal picnic grill.
AALTO + AALTO
railroad station in southern Finland—which manufactures
products by homegrown talents, including Klaus’s City Boy,
a portable grill with a no-nonsense design reminiscent of
Dieter Rams. Elina and Klaus have both built active practices,
with a mix of solo and team projects: Elina is one-third of
the collective Imu and has an interior-architecture practice;
Klaus does exhibition design. But they hope to get a joint
project on the market soon. “To be a designer in Finland, as anywhere, you have to be proactive,” Elina says. “We’re trying to
improve in that area and not give up after the first prototype.”
