Hvitträsk Architectural Museum in Kirkkonummi, Finland

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The Hvitträsk villa is located in Kirkkonummi, about 30 kilometres west from Helsinki. The estate was designed in the National Romantic style and built by the architect trio of Gesellius, Lindgren and Saarinen in the beginning of the 20th century. Hvitträsk is a museum, dedicated to preserving the legacy of the Gesellius Lindgren Saarinen office.

Hvitträsk was also the boyhood home of Saarinens’ son Eero Saarinen, who went on to become one of America's leading architects. The museum is usually open from end of April to October. Nowadays the villa is surrounded by an English style garden, has a souvenir shop, and a garden cafe. Hvitträsk is built on cliffs overlooking a clear water lake, down to which lead a number of trails with steps. On the lake shore there is a swimming jetty and a log sauna. Visitors are welcome to swim in the lake.

In 1922 Eliel Saarinen won second place in the architecture competition of the Tribune Tower in Chicago, Illinois, and in 1923 the Saarinen family moved to the United States. Some of Eliel Saarinen's most famous projects back home include the Central Railway Station in Helsinki, the Lahti Town Hall, the Finnish National Museum in Helsinki, and the St Paul's Church in Tartu (Estonia). Both Eliel Saarinen and his wife Loja were laid to rest at Hvitträsk.