Professor Pekka Pitkänen (1927 - 2018) was one of the most significant Finnish architects of the post-war period.

He is known as a master of concrete buildings and as a staunch supporter of modernist approach to architecture. He won numerous commissions by architectural competitions. The Chapel of the Holy Cross (1963 - 1967) in Turku is usually considered as Pitkänen’s main work. From 1950’s to 1980’s Pitkänen built in Turku numerous residential and commercial buildings, often in co-operation with the building company Urakoitsijat Oy. Together with Ola Laiho and Ilpo Raunio, Pitkänen planned the extension of the Finnish Parliament (1972 - 1978). Late in his career Pitkänen focused on public buildings, the finish of the career was the Turku court building, completed in 1997.