Sara Hildén’s Art Museum is situated next to Särkänniemi amusement park on the Northern end of the Tampere downtown. A sculpture park with grassfields surrounds the museum building.

Sara Hildén’s Art Museum was built for the art collection administrated by Sara Hildén’s Foundation. Sara Hildén (1905-1993) was a Tampere based businesswoman who owned one of the leading clothing companies in Tampere, established in the post-war years. She was an art collector and established the art foundation in her own name in 1962. Most of the artworks of her collection were purchased in collaboration with the Ateneum Art Museum. The collection was initially planned to be placed to Ateneum, but in the 1970s Sara Hildén decided to build an art museum for the collection. Her home town Tampere was a natural location for the museum. The development of the museum building was carried out in collaboration with the city of Tampere.

The museum building was designed by architect Asko Rasinperä from Pekka Ilveskoski’s architecture office. Pekka Ilveskoski had designed the Näsinneula Observation Tower and the Särkänniemi planetarium building, which are located next to the art museum’s plot. The museum was completed in 1978 and opened in February 1979. It was the first building in Tampere that was built especially for the use of art museum.

The museum represents typical 1970s concrete architecture. The façade’s exposed-aggregate panels are a load-bearing structure. The raw concrete interiors follow the ideals of the 1970s museum architecture, both national and international. The main floor was planned to be used as an exhibition space for paintings; the ground floor was planned for sculpture exhibitions.

Today the foundation and its museum house a collection of 600 artworks, both Finnish and international Modern art. A new museum building is planned to be constructed to Tampere downtown.