AUTUMN 2003

- The playbox, the name comes from the fact that this abandoned and totally vandalized house, was full of toys, children clothes, children music cassettes and story-books...

- A really puzzling place, as people never leave children's stuff behind when they move out. Clothes and toys are more valuable than gold, they don't loose their value, especially when they are in good condition. Also, have you ever heard about a children, who would leave toys behind, voluntarily?

- The place looked like it had been abandoned really quickly, like the real owners never even moved their own stuff out. Few speculations do come to my mind, after seeing these toys and children clothes lying abandoned in the house and in the yard. First thought was that perhaps the house was compulsory purchased by the bank of by some other instance. The family would have been forced to move out quickly and perhaps to a smaller apartment. They could have not taken everything with them. This kind of speculation is backed by the fact, that there was also few other buildings in the yard, that looked like they have been housing domestic animals. Perhaps something went wrong and the family made a personal bankruptcy. But still, leaving children's stuff behind is unheard of. They could have sold those items or at least store them to somewhere. Children's just don't leave their stuff behind...

- Second speculation that comes to my mind is that something happened either to the whole family, or to the parents or to the children. That could explain the moving out, that was done quickly. Also it would explain why most of the useful stuff was left behind. Perhaps it was too difficult to watch these items. Of course all of these are just speculations and nothing more. I cannot be sure what happened to the people that lived here.

- I let you to form your own opinion, after seeing the pictures...

SPRING 2006

- The above text is how it went then and now it goes like this:

- I was contacted by the people who used to live in the house. One of them offered a brief history about the place, which differs from the text that I have written a lot. There really wasn't anything dark or gloomy about the history of the house. It was constructed in the early part of the sixties. The construction of a new freeway was in general knowledge for a long time. All of the items even when in good condition inside the house, were at least ten years old.

- The final chapter for the place came at the start of the 21st century, when the construction of the new freeway was decided. The house became totally abandoned in 2001. Today the area where the house stood cannot be recognized anymore, as the freeway is ready and the landscape as a result has changed a lot.

- What's sad about this place is that it used to have a magnificent garden. Even people driving by used to come to the yard to look at it. But because people need to get quickly from Turku to Helsinki, the garden and the house which was valued by the people living in it, had to go. Progress someone might say, but there seems to be a too much progress which results personal histories wiped out.

- Another thing is, that this is a good reminded that the introduction texts which I've written to each galleries, might be a way off in places which do not belong to the general history, but rather to a local or personal histories. If and when the text are way off, my intention is not to hurt anyone's feelings, but rather to try to offer some explanation to myself, why something beautiful was abandoned.

- Here the reason was the freeway and a quick access from Turku to Helsinki. To me that is even more sad than the original texts...

- The ear-digger. When was the last time, that you cleaned your ears? Huh, can't hear what I say?

- Children's clothes in the upstairs. Outdoor clothes like that, are really not a cheap thing to buy. These even look like they haven't been used too many times. The feeling, when looking at these items in the upstairs, was strange and sad. The whole upstairs really look like nothing happy didn't happen to the family that used to live here.

- Story-books, music cassettes and children's drawings fill the floor in upstairs. A bit better drawings were also around, as were some novels intended for adults.