Amos Anderson (1878–1961) was Finland's leading figure in the newspaper publishing and printing industry, a respected businessman, and one of the country's prominent figures with strong ties to the art and cultural world, undoubtedly one of our nation's greatest cultural patrons of all time.

Amos led his conglomerate with the aura and prestige of a worldly businessman. He controlled, among other things, Hufvudstadsbladet and its printing press, as well as the Tilgmann and Mercator printing presses. He socialized extensively with the establishment in his homeland and spent extended periods on trips to Stockholm and the continent. Everywhere he visited, he was drawn to culture, especially to theater and church music.

Amos Valentin Andersson was born in 1878 to the farming family of Andersson in the village of Brokärr in the municipality of Kimito in southwestern Finland. His parents were Anders Johan Andersson (d. 1928) and Karolina Andersson (née Lindblom, d. 1904). The home conditions were modest, with strong elements of rural traditions and the faith. Amos attended primary school in Vreta, and thereafter, he studied at the Handelsinstitutet in Åbo. He specialized in the insurance industry through a position as a clerk at the Sjöförsäkringsaktiebolaget Triton in Åbo, and continued his studies in Göttingen and London from 1900 to 1902. Upon his return, he was drawn to Helsinki in 1902 to a position as an actuary in the newly established Industriidkarnes i Finland mutual fire insurance company. As an adult, he removed an 's' from his common last name.

After a period as an employed actuary, Amos Anderson increasingly began to invest in his own ventures in the capital. He certainly lacked neither energy nor entrepreneurial spirit, nor good contacts. Publishing newspapers and magazines, the advertising market, and the printing industry were his core areas. His ventures were often boldly financed through borrowing, and the profits he invested during the 1910s and 1920s, especially during World War I, in real estate and securities.

Already in his childhood and youth, Amos was interested in culture and religion in a broad sense. Alongside his successes in business and career, the adult Amos deepened and broadened his interest in both culture and spirituality. He supported, among other things, the Swedish Theater, Helsinki Art Hall, church restorations, choir activities, as well as a long list of individuals and artists, associations, and organizations.

Most importantly, he founded the Art Society. It was established on December 3, 1940. To this day, the association manages the legacy that continues Amos's values, as one of the major players in the third sector in Finland and the Nordic countries.

In the 1920s, Amos acquired large land estates, approximately 7,000 hectares, on Kimito Island and in Pargas. He purchased his country residence, Söderlångvik, in 1927, and transformed the estate in the Åboland archipelago into a large villa in classical Italian style during the 1930s. Especially in his later years, Amos spent increasingly longer periods at Söderlångvik, as a counterbalance to the urban hustle and bustle of the city.

His beloved hometown on Kimito Island enjoyed Amos's generosity in many ways. He supported the development of the local school network and the improvement of the island's road connections. In 1922, the Solhult children's home opened, where he acted as a patron. In memory of his mother, Amos founded a holiday home for exhausted housewives in Labbnäs in Dragsfjärd in the mid-1950s.

Amos Anderson passed away on Easter Sunday, April 2, 1961, at his beloved Söderlångvik, at the age of over 82. The beautiful home at Georgsgatan 27 in Helsinki and the grand country residence Söderlångvik on Kimito Island were furnished as art and home museums after his death in 1961, in accordance with his wishes.

Being unmarried and childless, Amos wanted to leave something of lasting value behind and immortalize himself and his profession. He bequeathed his entire estate to the association he founded himself, the Art Society. The association oversees the museums, properties, shareholdings, and business conglomerate. Over the years, Amos Anderson's legacy has grown, and the Art Society has continued to support art, culture, and education, and the Swedish language in Finland – just as Amos wished.