Sara Hildén

Thanks to their success, in 1961 she was able to build an outstanding collection of contemporary Finnish art which was expanded over the years to include items from the world's top international artists.

Brought up in Sääksmäki and Lempäälä, when her parents died in 1919 she moved to stay with relatives in Tampere, working as a nanny and a maid.

After she married the painter Erik Enroth in 1949, her artistic contacts widened further, providing a basis for her to become acquainted with the world of contemporary art.

In 1961 she decided to start her own art collection, and the following year, she established the Sara Hildén Foundation to coordinate its expansion.

Funded by profits from her fashion stores, she acquired not only Finnish art but a wide variety of works from abroad.