Eero Saarinen was born in Kirkkonummi, Finland in 1910. He studied sculpture at the Académie de la Grande Chaumiére in Paris (1929/30). After a year in art school, he decided to become an architect instead. Much of his work shows a relation to sculpture. He studied architecture at Yale University (1934). He received a scholarship there which enabled him to travel to Europe (1934/35). On his return, he taught at the Cranbrook Academy of Art.

In 1937, he began a collaboration with Charles Eames which culminated in a series of highly progressive and prize-winning furniture designs for The Museum of Modern Art´s 1940 “Organic Design in Home Furnishings” competition. He later produced several highly successful furniture designs for Knoll International. He worked in his father´s architectural office until Eliel´s death in 1950. His greatest architectural project was the remarkable TWA Terminal at John F. Kennedy Airport, New York.

Saarinen developed a remarkable range which depended on color, form and materials. Saarinen showed a marked dependence on innovative structures and sculptural forms, but not at the cost of pragmatic considerations. He easily moved back and forth between the International Style and Expressionism, utilizing a vocabulary of curves and cantilevered forms.

Eero Saarinen died in Ann Arbor, Michigan in 1961.

Saarinen worked for a variety of clientele including: General Motors, TWA, Smithsonian Institution, Knoll, Architectural Forum, Vassar, Concordia, Yale University,

Berkshire Music Shed, at Tanglewood, Massachusetts, 1940.
Dulles Airport, at Chantilly, Virginia, 1958 to 1962.
Gateway Arch, at St. Louis, Missouri, 1947 competition, construction 1961 to 1966.
General Motors Technical Center, at Warren, Michigan, 1946 to 1955.
IBM Research Building, at Yorktown, New York, 1957 to 1961.
John Deere and Company, at Moline, Illinois, 1963.
Kresge Auditorium, at Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1950 to 1955.
Kresge Chapel, at Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1955.
North Christian Church, at Columbus, Indiana, 1959 to 1963.
TWA at New York, at New York, New York, 1956 to 1962.
Yale Hockey Rink, at New Haven, Connecticut, 1956 to 1958.

Eero Saarinen

Great Buildings Online: Eero Saarinen
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