2020-03-05 - Baker House

An often told story about the design of the Baker House dormitory at MIT recounts that Finnish architect Alvar Aalto sought out the "lousiest" bricks in Boston. At that time, brick manufacturers strove for uniformity and consistency which of course tends to create rather flat buildings. Aalto wanted variety, character,  and shadows, which required finding a brickmaker with the lowest quality control standards around. 

The same clay fired at different temperatures or in the presence of varying gases can yield a surprising variety of colors and textures. The bulbous ones are referred to as clinkers. I think of them as the artisanal sourdoughs or wood fired pizzas of masonry. Their oddity is entirely part of the charm.

While much of the architecture designed by the Aalto office has this humane, handmade character, I think it was especially the correct choice for a university of technology in the years just after WWII. American Industry at that stage was rapidly running towards standardization and mass production, creating a society of undifferentiated 'consumers' and it needed the intelligence of graduates from schools like MIT to do it. To instill individualistic and humane values in the students, even obliquely thorough lumpy architecture, is a radical and necessary lesson to forestall the homogenization of society. 

Camera: Nikon D200
Medium: Digital