Terraced House at the Kauttua Works in Eura

The Terraced House in Kauttua is one of Alvar Aalto’s most prominent works also internationally. In 1937, Alvar Aalto received a commission from the A. Ahlström company for the town planning and infill building of the Kauttua ironworks area. The assignment also stemmed from Alvar Aalto’s friendship with the company’s CEO Harry Gullichsen and his wife Maire Gullichsen. Ties to the traditional architecture of the area were deliberately cut, and instead Kauttua was envisioned as a stage for both a new communal life concept, and modern architecture. The first house to be built in the area was a “stairless apartment block”, known as the stepped terrace house, completed in 1938.

The stepped terraced house was designed as housing for the company’s senior staff. Originally, there were to be several such houses placed on the slopes in the area. The stepped terraced house is a concrete example of the architect’s desire to place the building in close contact with nature: the elevation of the multi-storey residential house follows the slope of the hill, in such a way that the entrance to each dwelling is at ground level.

The three upper flats are equipped with a terrace that extends over half of the lower flat’s roof; this way no-one can look onto their neighbour’s terrace. The three lower dwellings have a basement cut into the slope, and contain three bedrooms, a kitchen, a housemaid’s room and a large living room looking out onto the terrace. The top block comprises three small apartments, two of which open with windows towards the rear of the building. The terrace rails and pergolas for creeping plants are unstripped saplings.

Architecture, interior design and art come together in the Terraced House, where one of the apartments (number 3) is open to the public. This apartment hosts varying exhibitions, and a sales exhibition of furniture pieces whose display is rearranged occasionally. The apartment is furnished with vintage Artek models and lighting fixtures, and some of the items are on sale.