Halosenniemi - The House Full of Women

Pekka Halonen - After the music lesson, 1894

Pekka Halonen (1865 - 1933) is one of the most beloved artists of the Golden Era of Finnish art: a versatile artist and master portrayer of Finnish landscapes and people. The countryside around Lake Tuusula - a bit over 30 km from the center of Helsinki - provided him with a rich source of ideas and inspiration. HERE great photos of his paintings.

The imposing pinewood villa known as ‘Halosenniemi’ 

was designed by the artist himself and his brother and was completed in 1902.

Around Lake Tuusula there was a lively community of artists 

involving the best of the Finnish culture. In addition to Halonen also 

the composer Jean Sibelius, painters Eero Järnefelt and Venny Soldan-Brofeldt, 

the writer Juhani Aho and the poet J. H. Erkko.

But what I really want to talk about is the fantastic art exhibition of Halosenniemi 

with the most famous painters of our Golden Era: The House Full of Women. 

The following links lead to my previous posts about these painters: Elin Danielson-Gambogi, 
Helene Schjerfbeck, Maria Wiik, Albert Edelfelt, Akseli Gallen-Kallela, & Pekka Halonen.

I have been tracing Elin Danielson-Gambogi (1861-1919). She got married to an Italian painter Rafaello Gambogi and lived the rest of her life in Italy.  Halosenniemi exhibition presents 10 works of hers! It was not allowed to photograph at the exhibition. Therefore I searched online these two paintings I saw, under the CC-license. The texts are from the novel I read by Kati Kanto - Finnish-Italian Rhapsody. 

"I get so well along with aunt Balda, everybody does. She beats everybody playing cards.

It is her bravura, that she has kept practicing since a young girl.

She has become quite a maestro! Aunt Balda is smoking her cigarettes and

clearly enjoying her life. She does not care a bit what people think of her.”

- The entertainment of Aunt Balda 1886, text Kati Kanto

"It is clear that I'm swimming upstream the whole time. Every single minute I have to 

fight against something. If it is not a concrete obstacle, someone’s opinion, 

it is the general mind setting. Oh how I love this painting about Tytti puffing smoke 

of her cigarette. It is so typical of her! 

But how much have I heard disapprovals and disgracing comments!”

- After the Breakfast 1890, text Kati Kanto / the model was the painter’s sister

Youtube has also other videos of Danielson-Gambogi’s works.

❤︎ ❤︎ ❤︎

// ALL SEASONS

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// MOSAIC MONDAY
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// WEDNESDAY AROUND THE WORLD

Artist of October - Pekka Halonen

Pekka Halonen (1865 - 1933) is one of our most important national romantic painters. He studied in Helsinki at the Art Society's Drawing School for four years and graduated with good grades winning a scholarship to study abroad. He went in 1890 to Paris, where he first studied at the Academy Julian and later under Paul Gauguin.

In 1895 Pekka Halonen married a young music student, Maija Mäkinen and they got 8 children. In the beginning of their marriage, the couple lived in several places before settling down in a house with a studio on Lake Tuusula in 1895. Here the Halonen family lived in an imposing pinewood villa known as ‘Halosenniemi’. Halosenniemi was designed by Pekka Halonen himself and his brother and was completed in 1902.

The building is now a museum that includes original furnishings and Halonen’s own art. On the shores of the lake where he resided an artists’ community flourished, helping to develop a sense of Finnish national identity. In addition to Halonen the artists' community's members were composer  Jean Sibelius, writer Juhani Aho, poet J. H. Erkko and painters Eero Järnefelt and Venny Soldan-Brofeldt. 

The view through the big atelier window is fascinating and it was an important source of inspiration for his art. In Tuusula Halonen had a wide circle of artist friends and relatives which provided him with a daily source of social and cultural stimulation.

I write here only shortly because at Alternative Finland you'll find many great photos of his paintings and his curriculum in English. It's worth while looking!

The fifth photo that I'm sharing is my salute to the fabulous September 2016!

Wishing you a good start for October!

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