A Dialogue  on the Architecture  of Taking Care

On Monday, 16 October 2023 at Paimio Sanatorium

The first edition of the Spirit of Paimio, a one-day conference took place at the historic Paimio Sanatorium—a global landmark of functionalist architecture designed by Aino and Alvar Aalto.

In 1933, the Paimio Sanatorium emerged as a beacon of hope and modernism, embodying a radical blend of architecture, medical research, craftsmanship, and harmony with nature. Created as an advanced medical facility for tuberculosis patients, the sanatorium has evolved to represent much more—it stands as a manifesto for an architecture of empathy, care, and human dignity. 

Paimio Sanatorium Foundation’s role is not only of preservation. We see sanatorium as a platform of development, learning and exchange that promotes the urgently needed skills of taking care through design of which the Aaltos were an emblem. Paimio Sanatorium Foundation aims to develop the site into a place that not only honors the Aaltos’ architectural heritage but also serves as a place of convergence and reflection on what needs to be done.

The Spirit of Paimio was not a one-off event; it’s an initiation into a larger, ongoing dialogue that we hope will influence and inspire communities and professionals around the globe. 

Spirit of Paimio featured an extraordinary lineup of keynote speakers: Juhani Pallasmaa, Lyndon Neri( Neri & Hu, Shanghai), Hans-Ulrich Obrist (Serpentine Galleries, London), Beatrice Galilee (The World Around, New York), Susanna Pettersson (Finnish Cultural Foundation), Otto Lowe (The Factum Foundation) and Kieran Long (ArkDes).

If you have any questions, please contact us at spiritofpaimio@paimiosanatorium.com