Aarne Adrian Ervi (originally Aarne Adrian Elers) (19 May 1910 – 26 September 1977) was one of the most important

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

s of

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

's post-

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

reconstruction period. Ervi was born in

Forssa Forssa is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located almost in the centre of a triangle defined by the three largest major cities in Finland (Helsinki, Turku and Tampere), in the Tavastia Proper region, and which is crossed by Highway 2 ...

, and graduated as an architect from the

Helsinki University of Technology Helsinki University of Technology (TKK; fi, Teknillinen korkeakoulu; sv, Tekniska högskolan) was a technical university in Finland. It was located in Otaniemi, Espoo in the metropolitan area of Greater Helsinki. The university was founded in ...

in 1935. After his graduation, he worked in the architect offices of Alvar Aalto and Toivo Paatela, 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 Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wid ...

elements in Finnish architecture while working on the design of the

University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki ( fi, Helsingin yliopisto, sv, Helsingfors universitet, abbreviated UH) is a public research university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but founded in the city of Turku (in Swedish ''Åbo'') in 1640 as the ...

's Porthania 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 Tapiola (; sv, ) is a district of the municipality of Espoo on the south coast of Finland, and is one of the major urban centres of Espoo. It is located in the western part of Greater Helsinki. The name ''Tapiola'' is derived from '' Tapio'', w ...

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, and the swimming hall. Ervi was an honorary member of the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...

and received an honorary doctorate from the University of Stuttgart. He died in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

, aged 67.

Works by Ervi

Oulujoki

*Pyhäkoski power plant and Leppiniemi in

Muhos Muhos is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the province of Oulu half an hour's drive (35 km) on route 22 from the city of Oulu, the capital of Northern Finland, and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The municipality has a ...

(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 (1955) * Tapiola Central Tower and Tapiontori shopping center (1959–1961) * Swimming hall (1965–1968) * Heikintori 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 sv, Åbo universitet , latin_name = Universitas Aboensis , image_name = University of Turku.svg , motto = ''Vapaan kansan lahja vapaalle tieteelle'' , established = 1920 , type ...

(1956–1959) *The Porthania building for the University of Helsinki (1957) *Culinary school Perho, Helsinki (1957) *Messukylä Gymnasium (1961) *The expansion of the Kemi 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