This summer’s local travel gem: Söderlångvik Museum opens on 3 June

Söderlångvik Museum re-opens on 3 June 2021 after a hiatus of more than two years. Now meticulously restored, the building showcases a selection of works from Amos Rex’s modern art collection, set amid Amos Anderson’s original interiors. The place breathes with the atmosphere of the 1930s when Anderson converted the nineteenth-century country house into an Italian-style classicist villa. The manorial garden, designed by Paul Olsson, has also been rejuvenated and restored, including its fountain and colonnade.

Media representatives are invited to a press event at Söderlångvik’s museum on 2 June (12.30-2.30 pm). RSVP: kerttu.raittila@amosrex.fi

Through New Eyes opening exhibition showcases Amos Rex collection

To celebrate the re-opening of Söderlångvik’s main building, the museum presents the exhibition Through New Eyes. It features more than 100 Finnish paintings and sculptures from the Amos Rex collection, mostly from the first half of the twentieth century.

Some of the works are familiar from Amos Anderson’s own collection while others are gems from the Amos Rex collections that have not previously been shown at Söderlångvik. The works in the exhibition have been carefully chosen to suit the atmosphere and interior design of each room. The artists include Sigrid Schauman, Rafael Wardi, Sulho Sipilä, Santeri Salokivi, Ragnar Ekelund, Alvar Cawén and Ellen Thesleff.

Museum visitors can now also see parts of the mansion that have not previously been open to the public such as the chauffeur’s room and the cinema in the basement, as well as new exhibition rooms that provide information about Amos Anderson and Söderlångvik as well as the works in the opening exhibition and how they have been conserved. You can also explore Söderlångvik with a new audio guide and daily guided tours in July. The museum is open daily 11 am-5 pm until the end of September (except Midsummer weekend, 25-27 June).

A new book on Söderlångvik will be published in Finnish and Swedish, entitled Amos Anderson’s Söderlångvik. It sheds light on Anderson’s relationship with Kimitoön, on Söderlångvik’s architecture, the museum’s history, the Söderlångvik estate’s businesses and the just-completed renovation.

An all-day summer travel destination

Besides the museum, the Söderlångvik Manor grounds include a restaurant, nature paths and two villas, available for rent. Söderlångvik is set amid one of Finland’s largest apple orchards. The estate, with its archipelago milieu, is renowned for its unique cultural landscapes and the natural beauty of the protected forests and shore of the Purunpää peninsula. The estate is owned by the Föreningen Konstsamfundet Association.

This summer, the Söderlångvik Restaurant Café features an exhibition of culinary-themed paintings by Paul Osipow (b. 1939). Also on display will be previously-unseen graphic works by the artist. The restaurant offers a new à la carte menu, a large terrace and a children’s playground.

In July a boat route will being operating three times a week from Hanko to Söderlångvik, continuing once a week on to Pargas (Parainen). A ship route is also planned from Turku to Söderlångvik.

Summer activities at Söderlångvik

• Summer cruises from Dalsbruk (Taalintehdas)
• 12 June: Small-scale season opening of the manorial estate.
  Programme includes the opening of a Purunpää photography exhibition in the restaurant, art workshops and various guided tours. More information on the event: https://soderlangvik.fi/en/events/
• 19 June: Kimito Island Nordic Gravel cycling competition
• 11 July & 15 July: Baltic Jazz and Kimito Island Music Festival concerts
• July: Yoga on the manor house terrace
• 14–15 Aug: Watercolour painting course
• 25 Sept: Seasonal finale: Apple Day

Press photos: media.amosrex.fi