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| 8 -
The Importance of Place |
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| Expression of place through architecture | |||
| Saynatsalo
Town Hall 1950-52 (A. Aalto, arch) The Saynatsalo Town Hall is a modest building in size and cost, but through some simple devices manages to underscore and amplify the institutional role of this building. The entry into the town hall is one floor above grade level. An outdoor ‘podium’ is created that one reaches in a controlled, framed manner via a stair run of stairs. Physically, there is no reason to elevate the entry into the town hall. Psychologically however, the elevated platform literally and figuratively raises the building above the everyday profane world of the surrounding town. The character of the podium is further emphasized by the irregular cascading stairs which are not meant to be used, but rather visually reinforce the hilltop characteristic of the building. The council chamber is the heart of the design, and is given suitable expression in physical terms. Fig 46 shows the massing and high pitched roof that stand out. The procession, or architectural promenade, further reinforces the psychic importance given this chamber. The council chamber is one level again higher than the already elevated entry. The corridor leading to the chamber (fig 40) is processional and underscores the importance of the room being entered. The sequence from the street, to the entry, and up to the council chamber is, at the risk of an overblown metaphor, an ascension from the profane to the sacred. Additionally, there is a tactile presence to the building that helps the individual physically connect and identify with the town hall. Fig 47 shows the handrail detail, to which significant attention has been given, crafting and proportioning it to the human hand. This attitude and emphasis is carried through in many of the details such as brick patterns, the council chamber ceiling, and the articulation of different materials. This tactile connection is important because it aids in integrating the individual into place created by the building. |
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| Fig 46 - Saynatsalo Town Hall (STH); Exterior | Fig 47 - STH; Handrail detail | Fig 48 - STH; Main level floor plan | Fig 49 - STH; Corridor to council chamber |
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| Fig 50 - STH; Council chamber | |||
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