PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT
In 1933, Alvar Aalto patented a way to bend solid birch through 90 degrees, and the Aalto Table is that patent standing on the floor. The same L-leg carries the Stool 60 and much of the Artek catalogue, but the table is where the technique does its plainest work: bent legs, one top, and nothing else. Artek, founded in 1935 by Alvar Aalto, Aino Aalto, Maire Gullichsen, and Nils-Gustav Hahl to put Aalto's furniture into production, builds it today in four shapes: round, rectangular, square, and half-round.
The L-Leg
The leg is the design. Aalto's technique saws thin kerfs into the end of a solid birch leg, glues veneer strips into the cuts, and bends the wood through a right angle, so the leg meets the tabletop as if it grew there. The joint needs no separate frame or apron, which is why the underside of an Aalto table is as clean as the top.
That construction has practical consequences at the dining table. With no apron, there is nothing for knees to hit, and chairs slide fully under the top. The solid birch legs take the knocks of daily use and can be refinished decades in, which is why original Aalto tables keep circulating on the vintage market.
Four Shapes
The round table comes in three diameters: 29.5", 39.5", and 49.25". The 29.5" 90B works as a cafe table for two or a generous side table, the 39.5" 90A seats three to four for daily meals, and the 49.25" 91 is the family dining size.
The rectangular table is the workhorse of the range, in nine sizes from 39.5"W to 94.5"W. The compact end doubles as a desk, the mid sizes seat four to six, and the 86 and 86A stretch past 82"W for the households that host. The square table runs 23.5", 29.5", and 47.25" per side, from a corner cafe table for two up to the 84, which seats a full dinner on a compact footprint.
The half-round table, in 47.25" and 59" widths, sits flat against a wall. It serves the hallway and the entry as a console, works as a compact desk, and gives a small kitchen a real breakfast table that claims half the floor space of a full round.
Tops run from birch veneer, which keeps the table one warm material head to toe, to a white laminate surface and a black linoleum surface, both edge-banded in solid birch. The linoleum is the sleeper choice: matte, quiet under dishes, and soft under a pencil, which is why it has a long history on work tables. On the white top, the birch edge band draws a thin warm line around the rim that keeps the table from reading cold. All shapes share the same 29.25" height.
In the Room
The shapes sort themselves by floor plan. The round table earns the condo dining nook: the 8-foot-ceiling, open-concept layout where the dining area bleeds into the living room with no wall between them, where its lack of corners keeps a walking line open around it. The rectangular table suits the dedicated dining room and pulls desk duty in a home office, and the half-round solves the narrow entryway, longer than it is wide, where a full table would block the path.
Artek's own styling seats the tables with the Chair 66, the Chair 69, or the Domus Chair, and tucks a Stool 60 beneath as the flexible extra seat. We have told the surrounding story in earlier posts: the Stool 60 covers the L-leg's most famous application, the Artek brand spotlight covers the company, and our dining tables guide places the Aalto Table among its neighbours.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was the Aalto Table designed?
Alvar Aalto designed it in 1933, the same year he patented the bent birch L-leg it stands on. Artek, founded in 1935 by Alvar Aalto, Aino Aalto, Maire Gullichsen, and Nils-Gustav Hahl, produces it today.
What shapes and sizes does the Aalto Table come in?
Four shapes, all 29.25" high. Round in 29.5", 39.5", and 49.25" diameters; rectangular in nine sizes from 39.5"W to 94.5"W; square in 23.5", 29.5", and 47.25" per side; and half-round in 47.25" and 59" widths.
What is the Aalto Table made of?
The legs and the top's edge band are solid birch, and the top surface comes in birch veneer, white laminate, or black linoleum. The L-legs are bent through 90 degrees using Aalto's kerf-and-veneer lamination technique and fix directly to the top without an apron.
Can the Aalto Table work as a desk?
Yes. The compact rectangular sizes are a common desk choice, the apron-free underside leaves full legroom, and the black linoleum top is the finish suited to writing and daily work. The half-round makes a space-saving desk against a wall.
Which chairs pair with the Aalto Table?
Artek's own styling uses the Chair 66, Chair 69, and Domus Chair, all built on compatible birch construction, with the Stool 60 as an extra tuck-under seat. The apron-free underside also welcomes chairs with taller seats than a framed table would allow.
More than ninety years after the patent, the idea underneath the Aalto Table still holds: bend the wood once, fix it to the top, and let birch do the rest, in whichever of the four shapes the room calls for. If you are weighing shapes, sizes, or tops against your floor plan, our design team works through dining layouts with clients across Canada.
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