Aarne Adrian Ervi (originally Aarne Adrian Elers) (19 May 1910 – 26 September 1977) was one of the most important architects of Finland's post- World War II reconstruction period. Ervi was born in Forssa, and graduated as an architect from the Helsinki University of Technology in 1935. After his graduation, he worked in the architect offices of

Alvar Aalto Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto (; 3 February 1898 – 11 May 1976) was a Finnish architect and designer. His work includes architecture, furniture, textiles and glassware, as well as sculptures and paintings. He never regarded himself as an artist, see ...

and

Toivo Paatela Toivo is a masculine given name most commonly found in Estonia and Finland and may refer to: *Andimba Toivo ya Toivo (1924–2017), Namibian politician and anti-Apartheid activist *Sigrid Elmblad (1860–1926), Swedish journalist, poet, translator ...

, before starting his own office in 1938. Ervi completed his most notable and well-known works during the post-war reconstruction period and later in the 1950s during the development of Finland's modern construction industry. Ervi was among the pioneers in the use of concrete elements in Finnish architecture while working on the design of the University of Helsinki's

Porthania Porthania is a university building located in the center of Helsinki, Finland. It is part of the city centre campus of the University of Helsinki. Designed by Aarne Ervi and completed in 1957, it is one of the notable modernist buildings from ...

building in 1949. He also designed hydro power plants and residential areas for the company's employees for Oulujoki Oy. One of Finland's largest hydro power plants in Pyhäkoski was designed by Ervi, as was nearly all of the nearby settlement, Leppiniemi. Ervi is probably best known for designing the town center plan of Tapiola after winning a design contest held in 1954. He also designed many of its most recognizable buildings, including the Tapiola Central Tower, shopping centers Tapiontori and

Heikintori Heikintori is a shopping centre in Tapiola, Espoo, Finland. Heikintori is the second oldest shopping centre in the entire country of Finland. It includes many shops including clothes and electronics shops, many restaurants, and a barber's shop. ...

, and the swimming hall. Ervi was an honorary member of the American Institute of Architects and received an honorary doctorate from the

University of Stuttgart The University of Stuttgart (german: Universität Stuttgart) is a leading research university located in Stuttgart, Germany. It was founded in 1829 and is organized into 10 faculties. It is one of the oldest technical universities in Germany wit ...

. He died in Helsinki, aged 67.

Works by Ervi

Oulujoki

*Pyhäkoski power plant and Leppiniemi in Muhos (1942–1951) *Jylhämä power plant and residential area in

Vaala Vaala is a municipality in Finland. It is located in the North Ostrobothnia region. Established in 1954 (predecessor municipality ''Säräisniemi'', established in 1867), the municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which ...

(1946–1950) *Nuojua power plant and residential area in Vaala (1946–1950) *Pälli power plant and residential area in Muhos (1946–1950) *Montta power plant in Muhos (1951) File:Pyhakoski Power Plant Muhos 2006 08 26.JPG, Pyhäkoski power plant File:Montta Power Plant Muhos 2006 08 26.JPG, Montta power plant

Tapiola

*Plan for the town center of Tapiola (1954) *Mäntytorni (1954) *

Kino Tapiola Kino Tapiola is a movie theatre in Tapiola, Espoo, Finland, founded in 1955.Tietoa kävijälle
''Kino ...

(1955) * Tapiola Central Tower and Tapiontori shopping center (1959–1961) *

Swimming hall A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable swimming or other leisure activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built above ground (as ...

(1965–1968) *

shopping center (1968) File:TapiolaMantytorniH.jpg, Mäntytorni apartment building in Tapiola File:Kino Tapiola Espoo.jpg, Kino Tapiola File:Tapiolan uimahalli 2005.jpg, Tapiola swimming hall File:Heikintori.jpg, Heikintori shopping centre

Other works

*Pieksämäki water tower (1956) *The new campus for the University of Turku (1956–1959) *The

building for the University of Helsinki (1957) *Culinary school Perho, Helsinki (1957) *Messukylä Gymnasium (1961) *The expansion of the

Kemi Kemi (; sme, Giepma ; smn, Kiemâ; sms, Ǩeeʹmm; Swedish (historically): ''Kiemi'') is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located very near the city of Tornio and the Swedish border. The distance to Oulu is to the south and to Rovani ...

city hall (1967) *Töölö Library, the city library of Helsinki (1970)

Gallery

File:Tampere city central government office building.jpg, Tampere City Central Office Building File:Pieksamaki_water_tower.jpg, Pieksämäki water tower File:Turun_yliopisto.jpg, University of Turku central plaza File:Porthania.jpg, Porthania File:Culinary_school_Perho.jpg, Culinary school Perho File:Kemi City Hall.jpg, Kemi city hall File:LibraryHelsinkiToolo.jpg, Töölö Library

External links and references

Aarne Ervi
at the Museum of Finnish Architecture
Tapiolan Keskus
at the Museum of Finnish Architecture

at the National Board of Antiquities of Finland {{DEFAULTSORT:Ervi, Aarne 1910 births 1977 deaths People from Forssa People from Häme Province (Grand Duchy of Finland) 20th-century Finnish architects