Varkaus of Architects

What does the handprint of Alvar Aalto and Kalevi Väyrynen look like in Varkaus?

The street scene in Varkaus is strongly coloured by the unique local culture built around industry. Over the years, Varkaus has been influenced by many prominent architects.

Valter and Ivar Thomé, Karl Lindahl, Kalevi Väyrynen and one of the world's most famous architects, Alvar Aalto, have all left their mark on the building heritage.

The Old Varkaus area is a nationally significant built cultural environment and its entire building stock is protected. The rich cultural history of the city can be explored, for example, on the Varkaus guides' themed tours and on the self-guided Walking tours in Old Varkaus.

We also recommend a self-guided tour with the help of map booklets or the mobile guides of the Story Player.

Alvar Aalto in Varkaus
Kalevi Väyrynen in Varkaus
Karl Lindahl in Varkaus
On the trail of Thomé in Varkaus

Information about other Alvar Aalto sites in Finland visit.alvaraalto.fi

Welcome to experience the Aalto on the shores of Lake Saimaa in Varkaus!

We recommend a self-guided tour with the Aalto Varkaus map brochure or the Story Player mobile guide www.tarinasoitin.fi/varkausaalto

In Varkaus, you can discover the old industrial town where Alvar Aalto left his handprint. He started as a factory designer in Varkaus in the mid-1930s, a role he held for a decade. You can also see the city's other old buildings, explore the nature of the Lake Saimaa region and Savonian cuisine.

Alvar Aalto, who was at the forefront of functionalism, aimed his designs at a more progressive and egalitarian society. In the 1940s, reconstruction and its rational implementation also became an important objective. In Varkaus, Aalto's pen produced designs for industrial buildings, zoning plans and homes for ordinary people. Many people in Varkaus still live in the type houses designed by Aalto. Hundreds of type houses designed by Aalto were built in the Varkaus house factory all over Finland.

The industrial history of Varkaus, which dates back more than 200 years, can be seen in the everyday life of the town. Over the years, the city has successfully created a number of industries, including a potter's and machine shop, shipbuilding, wood processing and paper industry. Today, Varkaus is also known for its expertise in energy technology.

What was once an old industrial area has been transformed into a centre for modern fishing. In Varkaus, you can enjoy environmentally friendly rainbow trout grown in the waters of Lake Saimaa.

The history of industry is complemented by the Museum of Mechanical Music, which presents the international history of mechanical music from the 19th century to the present day.

For information on other Alvar Aalto sites in Finland visit.alvaraalto.fi

The Old Varkaus area is an important preserved entity on Päiviönsaari and Kommila. The industrial building stock tells the story of industrial history and the history of the surrounding community. The buildings were designed by Valter and Ivar Thomé and Karl Lindahl, among others. The Old Varkaus area can be explored by booking a group tour on weekdays at the Varkaus Museums or on your own with the Walks in Old Varkaus.

Walks in Old Varkaus is an experience that brings the history of Varkaus and the people of Varkaus to life. The streets, buildings, factories and parks tell a story whose many phases and plots are not revealed at first glance. You can follow the route of the Experience Tour with the traditional map and information boards, but for the best experience, you can view the augmented reality stories of the sites from behind a QR code. Augmented Reality (AR) content is activated wherever you are when you scan the map images using the app. Audio content is only activated in the app in the vicinity of the destination.

• Go here to the Old Varkaus website

Kauppakatu and the Water Tower

The Kauppakatu in Varkaus is a street landscape of uniform scale and urban and streetscape character, mainly lined with commercial and residential buildings from the 1940s and 1950s in the city centre, Taulumäki. Most of the three-storey buildings were designed by renowned architects, and many of the buildings are the work of the architect Kalevi Väyrynen. At the top of the 45-metre-high Water Tower is a Terassikahvila Torni, which offers views over the city and the Saimaa waterway. Väyrynen's urban landscape, which he shaped as a commercial architect in the 1940s and 1950s, is appreciated as aesthetically and technically sustainable.

Nowadays Kauppakatu is a central shopping street with more than 90 specialised shops serving the area.

Manttu

The "Manttu", a mantala foundation house rising on a high ridge, stands out in a special way in the landscape of the Kangaslampi town centre. Designed by architect Oiva Kallio, the white plastered preservation house was completed between 1923 and 1926. Just before the inauguration ceremony, a fire destroyed the building. After the accident, it was decided to build the house even higher.

The house of the Foundation has served several purposes. The building, originally intended to be the house of the Protectorate, was used for meetings of the Municipal Council until 1937. The building has also served as a district court, school and savings bank offices, a municipal hall and an artist's studio. When the Protectorate was dissolved in 1944, the building became the property of the municipality of Mantala. The Mantala Foundation gave the building its nickname "Manttu".

In 1990, the building became the property of the municipality of Kangaslampi, and when Kangaslampi was transferred to Varkaus, Manttu was transferred with it. In 2020, Manttu was taken over by private owners. In the yard of the building there are two courtyard buildings, one of which is a stable designed by Oiva Kallio, which was converted into a residential building in the 1940s. The other outbuilding was built during the war as storage and sauna facilities.

Inquiries tel. 0400 470 377