About Aino Aalto

Born Aino Marsio (1894-1949), she married esteemed architect and glass designer Alvar Aalto in 1924. She won the 1932 iittala-Karhula design competition in Finland and the gold prize at the Milan Triennale in 1936 for her functionalist glassware collection. Aino Aalto’s namesake design is iittala’s oldest product and stands for the epitome of mindmade design.

Aino Aalto’s bold principles live on in the Aino Aalto glassware collection. Her fresh creations continue to provide simple pleasure to young and old the world over. This contemporary glassware, which today comes in different colors, can be combined with every object that Iittala produces, and sits comfortably in any scenario.

Aino Aalto fought habit by challenging people to accept radically new lines and forms that still fulfilled the same needs. Her design philosophy clashed with her times. Many wanted to hang on to their traditions. Fortunately, certain people appreciated Aino’s insight and supported her and her colleagues, as they revolutionized Finnish design.

Aino Aalto’s glassware and dinnerware are the first glass products intentionally designed with everyday use in mind, yet adaptable for modern production methods. Developed in the true spirit of functionalism, Aino Aalto’s glassware is so simple and timeless in form it is no surprise it still graces tables around the world 70 years later.