Extraordinary Enni Id

Without knowing the place beforehand, from the outside, you wouldn’t guess what the red cottage holds inside. The artist's home of painter Enni Id (1904-1992), located in the village of Kellosalmi in Padasjoki, is painted from floor to ceiling, including the furniture.

These photos are from a summer trip a few years ago and came up while I was browsing through my archives. I visited the artist’s home with my brothers, and I remember saying what a dream it would be to have a cottage like that to paint one day!

According to the introductory texts, Enni Id delved into the world of painting at the age of 62, after the death of her second husband. One of my younger brothers said he'd get me my own artistic cottage when I retire.

My cottage would be more subdued than Enni’s colorful, rough, and naive world, but even when the styles differ, you can’t help but admire the artistic vision. The persistence to follow one’s creative path is at the core of all artistic work, and as Enni’s story shows, it doesn’t matter at what age you find your calling.

It’s possible to visit the artist’s home on summer Sundays, and detailed opening hours can be found on the local village association’s website (in Finnish).