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The Paimio Sanatorium, designed in 1929–1933 by Alvar Aalto, is one of the landmarks of Functionalist architecture, but it is also an example of the architect's empathic attitude and skill. This is what Aalto writes about his design process: ‘I was ill at the time I received the commission, and was able to experiment a little with what it means to be really incapacitated. It was irritating to have to lie in a horizontal position all the time, and the first thing I noticed was that the rooms are designed for people in a vertical position, not for those who have to lie in bed all the time. Like flies around a lamp, my eyes turned towards the electric light, and there was no inner balance, no real peace in the room that could have been designed specially for a sick, bedridden person. I therefore tried to design rooms for weak patients that would provide a peaceful atmosphere for people who have to stay in a horizontal position. Thus, I decided against air conditioning because the entering current of air feels unpleasant to the head, and in favor of fresh air heated ever so slightly between the two window panes of the double glazing. I cite these examples to show how incredibly small details can be used to alleviate people's suffering. Here is another example, a washbasin. I strove to design a basin in which the water does not make a noise. The water falls on the porcelain sink at a sharp angle, making no sound to disturb the neighboring patient, as in the physically or mentally weakened condition the impact of the environment is heightened’.³⁰ Aalto often spoke of ‘the little man’ as the architect's real client, and he concluded that we should always design for ‘the man at his weakest’.³¹ These are examples of an empathic imagination in opposition to formalist imagination.