The house was built by Axel Haartman, the intendant of the Turku Art Museum, who also had been Bryggman’s teacher at the Turku drawing school. The house was called ”Hedvigs Minne” [In memory of Hedvig], after both Haartman’s mother and wife.

The pitch-roofed house is built in brick with a greyish white render. The relief decoration on the eaves is in blue and red. The form language of the building has influences from Italy and the works of Gunnar Asplund. The ground floor windows each have six panes, while the upper floor windows, which are placed close to the eaves, have four panes.

From the brick-floored entrance hall, arched doorways lead to the drawing room and stairs. Downstairs in the drawing room exposed beams form decorative elements in the ceiling. Upstairs, the ceilings of both the stair hall and the atelier at the north end are vaulted.

The house was furnished with furniture designed by Haartman himself, and he also painted the decorative paintings in the reception spaces.

Text: Mikko Laaksonen