The architect Alvar Aalto in the 1970s (left). Aalto's work, which includes the Villa Mairea in Noormarkku, Finland, is defined by a humanist philosophy. (Eva and Pertti Ingervo; Gustaf Welin/Alvar Aalto Museum)

LONDON: To promote Britain's first major retrospective of Alvar Aalto's work, the Barbican Art Gallery felt the need to link him to Le Corbusier and Mies van der Rohe as Modernism's third tenor. And to add topicality it turned over design of the show to a leading Japanese architect, Shigeru Ban, who regards Aalto as his principal influence.

The message is clear: Aalto may be a monument in his Finnish homeland and revered in many architectural circles. But three decades after his death even those conversant with today's high-profile architects may have trouble recalling Aalto's contributions beyond his influential chairs and vases. "Alvar Aalto: Through the Eyes of Shigeru Ban," which runs through May 13, aims to rectify this.

Lire la suite de l'article d'Alan Riding http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/04/04/news/aalto.php