Places linked to a character to visit Finland

Located in Järvenpää north of Helsinki, Ainola is the home of Jean Sibelius, the famous Finnish composer who settled there with his family at the beginning of the century and remained there until his death in 1957. He has composed over 150 works. Become a pilgrimage place for many music lovers. Very special atmosphere.

This is the house where the Finnish poet was born. Eino Leino was born on July 6, 1878. He will be considered one of the greatest Finnish poets, and became one of the most famous authors in the country. If you have wandered around Helsinki in the Esplanade Park, you have surely come across his statue. This museum is an opportunity to learn more about his life and works. The site is great for walks, with a café by the lake and bicycles for rent

For architecture and interior design enthusiasts. Both home and office, the Villa Aalto already shows the beginnings of the "new" Aalto, the genius of Romantic Functionalist architecture. The museum is also home to the Alvar Aalto Foundation, founded in 1999 to organize conferences bringing together architects, researchers and enthusiasts. Just 500 m away is the studio of Finland's most famous architect, typical of his style. A must-see if you're passionate about the man!

Albert Edelfelt (1854-1905 in Porvoo) had this small workshop built in 1883: it was there that he produced his most important paintings. Open to the public since 1951, the studio exhibits drawings, paintings, photos and objects that once belonged to the painter. Albert Edelfelt learned painting at the Beaux-Arts in Paris. He will meet artists such as Zola, Daudet and a colorist, Jules Bastien-Lepage. His love for Paris and his success inspired other Finnish artists to come and settle there later.

The family of the poet Johan Ludvig Runeberg settled in this Empire style house. When the poet died, the Finnish State bought the house: the furniture remained intact and evokes the daily life of the poet and his contemporaries at the beginning of the 19th century. The beautiful Fredrika garden (his wife's first name) adjoining is flowered in summer with roses in particular. Today Runeberg is celebrated on February 5 in the country, the occasion for everyone to taste the famous Runerberg cakes that his wife prepared for him: a real delight!

It is the home of Jean Sibelius, the famous Finnish composer who settled there with his family at the beginning of the century and remained there until his death in 1957. This pretty residence, a stone's throw from Lake Tuusula, designed by the great Finnish architect Lars Sonck, has become a place of pilgrimage for many music lovers. A very special atmosphere. The furnishings and furniture have remained unchanged since the composer's death, which allows us to enter his intimacy.

The residence of the composer Joonas Kokkonen (1921-1996), it is one of the few private buildings designed by Alvar Aalto. It is sometimes compared to "a well-tuned music box". A visit by the current enthusiasts and residents, pianist Elina Viitaila and opera singer Antti A. Pesonen, who will be delighted to finish the visit with a small private concert to demonstrate the perfect acoustics of the place. Joonas Kokkonen was influenced by Sibelius and then by Bartok. His works are varied: from symphonic music to opera music.

The house where the composer Sibelius was born has been transformed into a small, refined museum where one can discover the piano, the violin, the scores and the memories of the composer's family. Jean Sibelius (1865-1957) was one of the masters of Finnish music and his entire oeuvre was awarded the Nordic Council Prize, the highest literary distinction in northern Europe. His best-known work, Finlandia, is a true hymn to Finnish patriotism.

A marvellous chalet-studio by the painter Pekka Halonen (1865-1933), built in the romantic style on the shores of Lake Tuusula. There are also temporary exhibitions of paintings by Halonen's great contemporary artists, who were champions of national Romanticism. Pekka Halonen is a representative of the National Romantic style as well as Karelianism (a cultural movement of the late 19th century, which describes the political movement in the Grand Duchy of Finland aimed at spreading a Romantic vision of the Karelian region)