2. 7 The Rational Site Planning
A
alto was unable to attend the three-day seminar Rationelle Bebauungweisen
(Rational Site Planning) held in Brussels as it coincided with the opening of
the Minimum Apartment Exhibition in Helsinki.^464 Aalto had been informed
beforehand about the main topics of the seminar, having received, for example, an
abridged version of Gropius’ paper to be presented at the seminar, sent out by Giedion
to all CIAM representatives.^465 Aalto was fully involved in the Brussels event in spirit,
proven by the fact that he had delivered materials from Finland to Brussels for the
exhibition on sliding windows. Aalto also met Giedion in Zurich^466 and several CIAM
members in Frankfurt am Main a month before the conference.^467 Papers presented at
this conference also reflected on Aalto’s own discourse.
In his paper “Le parcellement du sol des villes” (The Subdivision of Land in Cities),
Le Corbusier noted that the themes of the conference were limited to living and that
the topics also incorporated the question of mobility. He responded analytically by
compartmentalising the problem into sub-themes: the dwelling was to secure privacy
for the family, there should be enough daylight, the designers should pay attention to
clean indoor air and ventilation, the living environment of a person working outside the
home should be organised based on a 24-hour clock and the “human machine” should
be maintained, for example, through exercise. Le Corbusier also recognised the need for
visual drama and architectural expression.^468
In Le Corbusier’s opinion, a choice should be made between the garden city and
dense urban concentration. He found the right alternative to be one that would not waste
people’s time, energy, money or land. He defended dense, high-rising developments and
fantasised about houses based on internal access corridors, or “streets”, with lifts trans-
porting residents to their flats. In the test buildings erected in Moscow, the noise from
the corridor had been considered a problem, which could, however, be solved through
architectural means, according to Le Corbusier.^469 In Le Corbusier’s vision, the housing
problems could be solved by building and utilising technology.
Gropius’ paper, “Flach-, Mittel- oder Hochbau?” (Low, Medium or High-rise?),^470
discussed the different heights of residential buildings. In his view, the problem was the
opposition between the town and the country – a topic which was also touched upon by
Aalto in his article “Bostadsfrågans geografi” (The Geography of the Housing Problem).
464 The third conference of CIAM was held in Brussels on November 27–29, 1930 and the Minimum Apartment Exhi-
bition in Helsinki was opened November 29, 1930.
465 Aalto’s letter to Giedion, November 8, 1930. Signum 10820, correspondence. AAM.
466 Aalto thanks Giedion for his hospitality in Zurich in his letter, November 9, 1930. Signum 25456, correspon-
dence. AAM.
467 The CIRPAC meeting was held in Frankfurt am Main on September 20 but Aalto visited the city only on September
25, 1930 and met many of CIAM’s representatives. Aalto apparently did not attend the CIRPAC meeting. See
Giedion’s letter to Aalto, August 25, 1930. Signum 10813, correspondence. AAM; Schildt 1985, p. 65.
468 Le Corbusier 1931, pp. 48–57.
469 Le Corbusier 1931, pp. 48–50; Le Corbusier 1964a [1933], p. 38–39.
470 Gropius 1955b [1931].