EKA Gallery

DEAR FRIEND
15–29 September 2022
Opening. 15.09 at 6 pm
EKA Gallery, Estonian Academy of Arts

Dear Friend,

We have been thinking about you and we are looking forward to meeting you at the Dear Friend exhibition from 15–29 September 2022 at EKA Gallery. We hope you have time to pass by! The gallery doors open on 15 September at 18:00.

Since 2019 we have been writing, folding, publishing, sharing and posting the Dear Friend publication. There are four seasons of published letters. This Fall seemed like the right time to meet after a few years of correspondence. It is a chance to talk about publishing, writing, small publications, doing things together, and why not just about how we are doing.

The exhibition features all the published Dear Friend letters. The letters are available for you to read, take home or mail to another friend. Next to the letters there are projects and publications by our penfriends. These are mostly publications that connect with the Dear Friend project contextually, formally, community-wise and beyond borders.

There is also a public programme that includes presentations of periodical publications and books; from 20–23 September readings and recordings of letters, programme Tracks as envelopes by oH radio; 24 September Dear Friend symposium, a day full of presentations and discussions; 29 September Dear Friend letter writing workshop and more.

A catalogue will be published alongside the exhibition, with contributions by Singapore-based design writer Justin Zhuang, designer and writer Else Lagerspetz, and artist Lieven Lahaye. It will include published letters and a selection of photos of the activities. The book launch will take place at the symposium on 24 September.

PUBLIC PROGRAM

16–29 September, EKA Gallery

16.09 17:00 artist Lieven Lahaye presents a new issue of Catalog

20.09–23.09 11:00–13:00 & 14:00–16:00 oH radio’s Tracks as envelopes, public readings of Dear Friend letters in the exhibition space. Come read one!

22.09 18:00 presentation of Exercises in Practical Mischievery by Laura Pappa, Carlo Canun, Maki Suzuki

24.09 12:00–17:00 Dear Friend symposium and catalogue presentation. Come and join!

28.09 18:30 launch of the All Horses Are the Same Colour by EKA GD MA students

29.09 18:00 Dear Friend letter writing workshop. Please join!

SYMPOSIUM

24 September 12:00–18:00, EKA Gallery

Dear Friend symposium is a gathering where we explore practices and questions around experimental and self-publishing, mailing as a form of publishing, and design as writing through presentations and discussions.

Symposium is held in English.

12:00 Gathering

12:30 Presentation Undisclosed Relations, Henk Groenendijk

Henk Groenendijk travels from Sofia, Bulgaria to open some boxes full of student publications, a selection of works from the Test Press exhibition, and copies of Test Press magazine. Henk will tell us about his library and collection of student publications and the links that are perhaps not visible. The connections are in the books, posters, and other paraphernalia.

Heni Groenendijk is a collector, educator, and curator of Test Press Books. He worked as a professor at the Graphic Design Department of Gerrit Rietveld Academie and initiated the Rietveld & Sandberg Library Publications Archive.

13:00 “A Lecture on Nothing: on the Legibility of Illegible Text”, Arja Karhumaa

What do typographic texts consist of? How does typography relate to language, image, and writing? How do you read illegible text? What is type beyond only form, as part of our coexistence and social environment? This performative talk has no answers to these questions but aims to stay with the trouble they make.

Arja Karhumaa is a text designer, a feral academic, and a language animal. She is Assistant Professor and Head of Programme in Visual Communication Design at Aalto University ARTS, Finland.

13:30 open discussion

14:00–15:00 break/lunch

15:00 Presentation about de Appel’s publication The Remote Archivist, Nell Donkers

Nell Donkers, archivist of de Appel in Amsterdam will talk about The Remote Archivist, a recurring (one-page folded poster) publication from the Archive. There are four series of the publication that have been presented so far. The aim is to invite artists, thinkers, and readers to dive deeper into the archive and recalibrate the archive materials for their own practice. Bardhi Haliti is the designer of the project and of de Appel’s house style.

Nell Donkers has managed the archive (library, archive, and collection) of De Appel in Amsterdam since 2002 and made it digitally accessible.

15:30 Talk about Queer.Archive.Work and the resting reader, Paul Soulellis

Paul Soulellis’ talk will present his work at the nonprofit library, publishing studio, and residency Queer.Archive.Work in Providence, US with a focus on collectivity in the context of independent publishing. The resting reader is a book of texts and images assembled from source material found on the shelves of the Queer.Archive.Work library. The content was selected during the rise of the COVID-19 Omicron variant in December 2021, around the loose themes of rest, quiet, care, queer, sanctuary, reflection, collective, and generosity.

Paul Soulellis is an artist and educator based in Providence, RI. His practice includes teaching, writing, and experimental publishing, with a focus on queer methodologies and network culture.

16:00 open discussion

17:00 presentation of the Dear Friend catalogue, Ott Kagovere and Sandra Nuut

Ott Kagovere is a Tallinn-based graphic designer and the Head of the Department of Graphic Design at the Estonian Academy of Arts.

Sandra Nuut is a curator at the Estonian Museum of Applied Art and Design. Previously she worked at the Estonian Academy of Arts and New York-based gallery Chamber.

Exhibition concept/curation:

Ott Kagovere & Sandra Nuut

Exhibition design

Ulla Alla & Nika Gabiskiria

Letters by
Alicia Ajayi, Stuart Bertolotti-Bailey, Claudia Doms, Nell Donkers, Maarin Ektermann, Rosen Eveleigh, Maryam Fanni, Saara Hannus, Eik Hermann, Paul John, Maria Juur, Ott Kagovere, Maarja Kangro, Arja Karhumaa, Kristina Ketola Bore, Nicole Killian, Rachel Kinbar, Tuomas Kortteinen, Keiu Krikmann, Kadri Laas, Else Lagerspetz, Lieven Lahaye, James Langdon, Jungmyung Lee, Kai Lobjakas, Michelle Millar Fisher, Maria Muuk, Sheere Ng, Sandra Nuut, Laura Pappa, Jack Self, Indrek Sirkel, Paul Soulellis, Triin Tamm, Laura Toots, Alice Twemlow, Loore Viires, Sean Yendrys, Justin Zhuang

Letter visuals by

Mai Bauvald, Pärtel Eelmere, Martina Gofman, Kersti Heile, Laura Merendi, Mikk Oja, Rex, Johanna Ruukholm, Robin Siimann

Thank you

Andres Alliksaar, Louis Biasin, Rita Davis, Pärtel Eelmere, Maarin Ektermann, Mark Foss, Triin Jerlei, Mette Mari Kaljas, Kaur Karu, Kertu Klementi, Else Lagerspetz, Rasmus Lukas, Laura Merendi, Anete Ots, Laura Pappa, Steven Pikas, Lola Maria Pärna, Emma Reim, Filipp Rotšenkov, Maret Sarapu, Georg Ander Sild, Indrek Sirkel, Mariliis Tarja, Ljubov Terukova, Taylor Tex Tehan, Laura Tursk, Pille-Riin Valk

Detailed program: facebook.com/events/440404928139944/440701844776919

Dear Friend web archive: https://gd.artun.ee/dearfriend/

Supported by Cultural Endowment of Estonia, Estonian Academy of Arts, European Regional Development Fund

See you soon!

Sandra & Ott

Join us for the opening of Kristel Zimmer’s solo show “The Rite of Spring” on August 11 at 4 pm at EKA Gallery! The exhibition is curated by Ene-Liis Semper and on view until September 10.

From the beginning, the body and physicality have been one of Kristel Zimmer’s themes. Her earlier works were more involved with the surreal and penetrating the darkest part of the subconsciousness. However, in the “The Rite of Spring” series, the brighter and more immediate side of being can also be perceived.
“The Rite of Spring” celebrates pure physical presence while at the same time opening the deeper layers of being behind feminine physicality.
Kristel does not use digital manipulation in her work but experiments with the field of view limited by the lens and different points of view. Therefore, her creation is also a performance carried out in front of the camera, in which the viewer can partake through the video medium.

Kristel Zimmer (b.1997) is a young artist and performer, currently studying in the Estonian Academy of Arts, Scenography MA. Her previous artistic activity has with the artists´ group dassemperdepot.

Ene-Liis Semper (b. 1969) is an Estonian video and installation artist and theatre director. Her works almost always involve a kind of duality, maintaining a precisely measured cognitive balance between seriousness and irony. The artist interacts with the viewer through testing the limits of both physical and psychological space.

This year, the graduation party takes place on 21th of June, starting from 19:00 in the EKA Gallery.

In addition to the graduating students, all other students, graduates and staff are welcome to attend. To kick off the party, there will be a drag show followed by the band Arg Part.

After the band, DJs will take over. The EKA X SVETA BAR will be serving both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks all night long. Guests can also capture the night in the photobooth which will be installed next to the gallery.

The EKA Grad Party is hosted by EKA Student Council.

SCHEDULE:

19:00 – beginning of the party

19:30-21:00 – Drag Show

21:00-23:00 – Arg Part

23:00-00:00 – DJ Silikaat

00:00-03:00 — DJ YALLAH b2b DJ HOLY MOUNTAIN

Event on Facebook

Performance “PROTOPOPO POFORMANCOEPOST“ by Gelatin
28.06 at 7 pm
EKA Gallery, Kotzebue 1

Join us for the event “PROTOPOPO POFORMANCOEPOST“ by the legendary performers of the contemporary artists’ group Gelatin!

You are warmly welcome to witness live stage activities around the topics of physical, subliminal and abstract proximity; on nearness, warmth, propinquity, peculiar behaviour and distance in general. The performance is an outcome of a three-day workshop given by Gelatin with six EKA students.

The group comprises the artists Ali Janka, Florian Reither, Tobias Urban, and Wolfgang Gantner, who first met at summer camp in 1978. They formed Gelatin in the 1990s in Vienna, Austria, and began exhibiting internationally in 1993.

Characterized by disparate yet unifying backgrounds, Gelatin perform their practice at the fragile crossroads of humour, spontaneity, childlike naiveté, and blatant sexuality, which has given rise to their over-the-top performances and visually enticing work. Anticipating relational aesthetics, Gelatin plays with audience participation and collaboration as a central tenet of their oeuvre. Attitudes become form, and viewers are invited to join in, defying routine behaviour while enjoying art from a new perspective.

www.gelitin.net

Supported by Estonian Cultural Endowment, Erasmus

TASE’22
Estonian Academy of Arts Grad Show
28.05–09.06, open daily 12–6 pm

Opening: 27.05, 4pm @EKA

tase.artun.ee

Exhibition locations:
EKA, Põhja pst 7
Vent Space, Vabaduse väljak 6-8
ARS Art Factory, Pärnu mnt 154
Rotermanni kvartal, Rotermanni 7

TASE is the annual graduation show of the Estonian Academy of Arts. It presents the final projects of Fine Arts, Architecture, Design, and Art and Culture faculties’ master’s students, along with the final artworks by Fine Arts and Design faculties’ bachelor’s students. The opening of the main exhibition and TASE’22 webpage tase.artun.ee takes place on May 27th at 4 pm at EKA!
Most of the works are exhibited at EKA on all five floors and including EKA Gallery and Billboard Gallery. Additionally, you can visit the exhibition at ARS Art Factory (Project Space, Showroom and room 112), Vent Space, Rotermanni 7, Lai 31, Kanuti Gildi Hall Cellar, Kadriorg Art Museum, Poordi 3 and Loewenschede tower on Kooli str 7. See more info on the programme.

tase.artun.ee opens simultaneously with the main exhibition on May 27th!

In addition to the works at the main exhibition, written theses by PhD and Art and Culture graduates and grad works from the rest of the BA graduates will be presented on tase.artun.ee. Last year’s TASE page can be found at tase20.artun.ee and tase21.artun.ee.

Young Artist Award and Young Applied Artist Award

The Young Artist Award and Young Applied Artist Award winners at the master’s and bachelor’s levels will be announced at the opening of TASE main exhibition. The prizes are each 1500€.
Young Artist Award winner at the master’s level will be chosen from Contemporary Art graduation works and at the bachelor’s level from the Graphic Art, Installation and Sculpture Painting, and Photography graduation works. The master’s prize includes a solo exhibition at the Hobusepea or Draakon gallery in 2023. This year’s jury members are art professionals Elin Kard, Marko Mäetamm, Aleksander Zahharov, Karolin Poska (only MA), Sigrid Viir and Maarin Ektermann.
Young Applied Artist Award winners will be selected from the Design and Crafts graduation works. The master level prize includes a solo exhibition at the HOP Gallery. The jury members are Maria Valdma, Ketli Tiitsar, Gregor Taul, Keiu Krikmann and Tiina Sarapu.

PROGRAMME

Exhibition opening ceremony
27.05 at 16.00, EKA lobby

Theses defences
30.05–15.06, www.artun.ee/kaitsmised

TASE FILM
04.06 at 17.00, A101

Scenography bachelors’ works exhibition “Kujundliku Mõtte Labor”
Estookin, Kristel Zimmer, Anita Kremm, Linda Mai Kari, Liisamari Viik, supervisor Ene-Liis Semper
28.05–07.06, open every day at 12.00–18.00, opening on 27.05 at 18.00
Lai 31, II floor

Graphic Design master’s graduation works “Silence After Early Hours”
Mucho Mustachio (Alejandro Bellón Ample), Louise Borinski, Daddy Breezy (Aleksandrs Breže), Energy Star (Paula Buškevica), Reese (Björn Giesecke), Tropaasi (Otso Peräsaari), Foxy (Diandra Rebase), miss S (Katarina Sarap)
04–11.06 at 13.00–19.00
Opening 03.06 at 18.00, finissage 11.06 at 21.00
Kanuti Guild Hall Cellar, Pühavaimu 5
www.silenceafterearlyhours.eka-gd-ma.ee

“Piiritu”, curator Nele Ambos
Cultural Heritage and Conservation master’s graduation work
Lilly Walther
23.02–29.05, Wed, Fri-Sun at 11.00–18.00, Thu at 11.00–20.00
Tartu Art Museum, Raekoja plats 18, Tartu

“ars viva 2022 – tajuvälja agendid”, curator Maria Helen Känd
Curator studies master’s graduation work
Tamina Amadyar, Laura Põld, Lewis Hammond, Jānis Dzirnieks, Anastasia Sosunova, Mooni Perry
09.04–07.09, Wed-Sun at 12.00–18.00
Kai kunstikeskus, Peetri 12

“Visible Storage Gallery for the Sculpture Collection”, curator Maria Väinsar
Department of Cultural Heritage and Conservation, master’s thesis
18.05.2022–31.12.2024
Tue, Thu-Sun at 10.00–18.00, Wed at 10.00–20.00
Kadriorg Art Museum, Weizenbergi 37, 10127 Tallinn

Olev Kuma “Transmission”
Painting bachelor’s graduation work
28.05–09.06, every day at 11.00–19.00
Poordi 3

Caroline Pajusaar “Inferno”
Bachelor’s thesis in Graphics
27.05–10.06, Mon-Fri at 11.00–18.00
Loewenschede tower, Kooli 7 (entrance from the park, last floor)

SATELLITE PROGRAMME

Open Academy exhibition “Maalikunsti A, B, C… ja Z lõputööde näitus”
Kaia Hommik, Ivo Kuldmäe, Anne-Mari Rannamäe, Jana Koel, Gerli Pesor, Andri Lõhek, Mari-Helen Vili, Kristine-Kristi Kasak, Ülle Soitu, Astrid Mägi, Mari Annuka, Raili Moldov
20.05–28.05, Wed-Fri at 12.00–18.00, Sat at 12.00–16.00, opening 19.05 at 18.00
Artdepoo gallery, Jahu 12-213

Jewellery and Blacksmithing II year student exhibition “NIHE”
Anna-Maria Vaino, Ardo Teesalu, Bianca Triinu Toots, Hugo Toss, Margus Elizarov, Villu Mustkivi, Visa Eino Eduard Nurmi, Ellen Axberg, Camilla Prey
20.05–02.06 at 12.00–20.00, opening 19.05 at 18.00
Uus 4

Photoart Academy exhibition “Ruumis”
Marcus Kallavus, Marta Khrshanovskaya, Silvi Kiin, Elias Kuulmann, Kristi Leps, Margus Metsaäär, Jaanus Muruõis, Nelli Pello, Kärt Petser, Annika Vihmann
Open 24/7, opening 07.06 at 18.00,
Telliskivi 64

Head organiser: Pire Sova
Assistant: Dana Lorên Vares
Exhibition design: Brigit Arop, Katarina Ild, Anabel Ainso
Communication: Solveig Jahnke, Andres Lõo, Maarja Pabut
Graphic design: Birgita Siim, Agnes Isabelle Veevo, Aaro Veiderpass
Web coordinator: Kert Väljak
TASE FILM and opening event: Johanna Kuzmenko, Ligia Fernandes

Supported by Eesti Kultuurkapital, Kasevetekohin, Mistra, AkzoNobel, BigBerry

Mon-Sat, 3—6 pm

May brings an opportunity to experience, in an exhibition format, works produced by students in the Faculty of Fine Arts as their term projects: every day there will be a fresh crop of university students’ works on display in the gallery.

Works in contemporary art, prints, installation, sculpture and painting curricula will be on display. On each morning of the marathon, a new exhibition will be installed and in the evening the exhibit will give way to the next one. Hopefully, viewers will be able to keep up with the pace of the young artists.

SCHEDULE

29.–30.04 – Drawing, supervisor Ülle Marks

03.05 – Studio photo, supervisor Madis Kurss

04.05 – Drawing, supervisor Ulvi Haagensen

05.05 – Drawing, supervisor Tõnis Saadoja
06.05 – Drawing, supervisors Maiu Rõõmus, Matti Pärk

07.05 – Conceptual drawing supervisor, juhendaja Anna Škodenko

09.05 – Conceptual drawing supervisor, juhendaja Tõnis Saadoja

10.05 – Graphic art, supervisors Viktor Gurov, Eve Kask, Lennart Mänd

11–12.05 – Contemporary art, supervisors Marge Monko, Taavi Talve, Liina Siib, Kristi Kongi, John Grzinich, Kristaps Ancans, Anu Vahtra

13–14.05 – Kujundliku Mõtte Labor— Ekspeditsioon Narva, supervisor Ene-Liis Semper

16.05 – Graphic art, supervisors Maria Erikson, Britta Benno, Charlotte Biszewski, Aarne – Mesikäpp, Maria Izabella Lehtsaar

17.05 – Photo art project, supervisors Marge Monko, Reimo Võsa-Tangsoo

18.05 – Painting, supervisors Mart Vainre, Tiina Tammetalu, Aapo Pukk

19.05 – Painting, supervisors Sigrid Viir, Mihkel Ilus, Tõnis Saadoja, Heldur Lassi

“festival…showcase” 5.—10.04 at EKA Gallery
Saara Liis Jõerand, Gregor Kulla, Riin Maide, Nele Tiidelepp, Henri Särekanno, Mattias Veller
The exhibition is open on 6.—9. April at 3—7 pm.
Opening: 5. April at 6 pm

In the course of six days, there will be actions, performances and presentations. This is a festival.
Six young authors share a platform to create and experiment. Tis is a showcase.

“festival…showcase” is an exhibition and a cluster of performances that takes place on 5—10 April in EKA Gallery. The cycle begins with a performative opening night on the 5th of April and ends with a Sunday afternoon presentation on the 10th of April. The days in between will be filled with ever-changing performances, including video screenings, sound works, and duration and short performances for both body and voice.

“festival…showcase” is an integration project of mediums with a focus on collaboration. Artists from different creative disciplines juxtapose their artistic tools with those of others, borrowing resources from them. The works flow across the borders of conventional media, using the fragility and uncertainty of the situation as an input. The subject of the works seen in the gallery originates from the moments spent together, it analyzes the mutual relations and draws on each other’s skills.

Outside of creative manifestations, the exhibition is an installation environment that reflects the preparation and the leftover. The spatial situation constantly alternates between festal and adjuratory, installation and performance. The space is shared with material and props of previous and subsequent works that will come to life in EKA Gallery.

FESTIVAL SCHEDULE

TUESDAY, 5.04

18:00
Exhibition opening ceremony

Overalls
Mattias Veller
Performance for six figures
40′

WEDNESDAY, 6.04

15:00-19:00
The exhibition is open

I’ll be filming now
Henri Särekanno
An audiovisual experiment, in which the camera and the video image are co-creating the space

juhan
Henri Särekanno
Documentary about artist residency at Juhani farm

My words I
Saara Liis Jõerand
Continued writing during the exhibition

15:00
PRINT I: relief
Riin Maide
Performance; mostly printing
30’

16:00
My words II
Saara Liis Jõerand
A performance where abstract words are concretized into a suitable form for the exhibition
20’

17:00
Wrestling
Mattias Veller and Henri Särekanno
Audio-collage and sport-performance
15’

18:00
Phonecalls about theatre
Mattias Veller
Qualitative survey where the artist is challenging himself physically
20’

19:00
relief
Gregor Kulla
Performance and electroacoustic composition that deals with defining interval ratios through tension
30’

THURSDAY, 7.04

15:00-19:00
The exhibition is open

I’ll be filming now
Henri Särekanno
An audiovisual experiment, in which the camera and the video image are co-creating the space

juhan
Henri Särekanno
Documentary about artist residency at Juhani farm

My words I
Saara Liis Jõerand
Continued writing during the exhibition

15:00
PRINT II: intaglio (sort of)
Riin Maide
Performance; mostly printing
150’

16:00
My words II
Saara Liis Jõerand
A performance where abstract words are concretized into a suitable form for the exhibition
20’

17:00
Wrestling
Mattias Veller and Henri Särekanno
Audio-collage and sport-performance
15’

18:00
Phonecalls about theatre
Mattias Veller
Qualitative questionnaire where the artist is challenging himself physically
20’

20:00
relief
Gregor Kulla
Performance and electroacoustic composition that deals with defining interval ratios through tension
30’

FRIDAY, 8.04

15:00-19:00
The exhibition is open

I’ll be filming now
Henri Särekanno
An audiovisual experiment, in which the camera and the video image are co-creating the space

juhan
Henri Särekanno
Documentary about artist residency at Juhani farm

My words I
Saara Liis Jõerand
Continued writing during the exhibition

15:00
PRINT III: silk
Performance; mostly printing
20’

16:00
My words II
Saara Liis Jõerand
A performance where abstract words are concretized into a suitable form for the exhibition
20’

17:00
Wrestling
Mattias Velleri and Henri Särekanno
Audio-collage and sport-performance
15’

18:00
Phone calls about theatre
Mattias Veller
Qualitative questionnaire where the artist is challenging himself physically
20’

19:00
What to do to feel good
Nele Tiidelepp
A performance for six performers with myself and others, about talking over, along with and behind someone’s back
60’

SATURDAY, 9.04

15:00-19:00
The exhibition is open

I’ll be filming now
Henri Särekanno
An audiovisual experiment, in which the camera and the video image are co-creating the space

juhan
Henri Särekanno
Documentary about artist residency at Juhani farm

My words I
Saara Liis Jõerand
Continued writing during the exhibition

15:00
PRINT IV: continuations/summaries
Riin Maide
Performance; mostly printing
40’

16:00
My words II
Saara Liis Jõerand
A performance where abstract words are concretized into a suitable form for the exhibition
20’

17:00
Wrestling
Mattias Velleri and Henri Särekanno
Audio-collage and sport-performance
15’

18:00
Phonecalls about theatre
Mattias Veller
Qualitative questionnaire where the artist is challenging himself physically
20’

19:00
Showcase…festival inside the “festival…showcase”
open platform / togetherness / party / festival / showcase

Evening in open form, where you can take part in or miss out on different acts and performances. Works in every medium from uncountable performers, including the “festival…showcase” team and unknown others, that can last anywhere from one second to 10 minutes.

EKA baar is open at the event!

SUNDAY, 10.04
15:00
Exhibition finissage

Print presentation
Riin Maide
Publication presentation, printed during performances PRINT I, PRINT II, PRINT III and PRINT IV
60’

Short bios:

Saara Liis Jõerand (1999) studies general linguistics at the University of Tartu. She is interested in the area between thought and its expression. Jõerand has a bachelor’s degree in semiotics and culture theory, has published literary and theatre criticism and has been engaged in several theatre and art projects.

Gregor Kulla (2000) is a composer, writer and critic who studies composition with professor Tõnu Kõrvits and Helena Tulve in the Estonian Music and Theatre Academy. Previously, he has finished H. Eller Tartu Music College in oboe and composition and studied sustainable art in the Novi Sad EU School of Participation 2021. For his work in the cultural field of Tartu, Kulla has been named the Young Culture Carrier of the year 2020. Last year he earned the title of laureate of cultural magazine Sirp and he currently holds the Erkki-Sven Tüür scholarship.

Riin Maide (1997) is an artist and scenographer who has graduated from the graphic arts department of the Estonian Academy of Arts and educated herself in scenography and alternative theatre in DAMU Prague. Maide’s art focuses on noticing and playfully deconstructing spatial situations both on- and off-stage. She has organised and taken part in group exhibitions and different theatre projects in Tallinn, Tartu, Prague and Brussels. In 2020 she was awarded the Young Artist prize and the Edmund Valtman scholarship for young graphic artists.

Nele Tiidelepp (1998) is a freelance artist and a 2020 graduate of the installation and sculpture department of the Estonian Academy of Arts whose practice draws inspiration from spontaneous reactions to the environment and materials. She often expresses spontaneous and chaotic flow of thought in mediums like text, video, sound, installation and performance. Tiidelepp has won the Young Tartu competition in 2021, the Young Artist award in 2020, SIIL Prize and Millenium Prize in 2019, and has participated in art events in Estonia, Basel, Rovaniemi, Riga, Brussels, Stuttgart, Venice and Moscow.

Henri Särekanno (1999) is a freelance art worker and cinephile. He has studied art history and philosophy. In his creative practice he works with audiovisual media and is mainly interested in the border between documentary and fiction. Särekanno is a founding member of the vocal-instrumental ensemble SEAPUTS in which he plays guitar and violin.

Mattias Veller (1998) studies in the painting department of the Estonian Academy of Arts but consistently cheats on painting with all other possible creative practices. In his interdisciplinary activity, he has touched upon the themes of physical labour and the relation between humans and material and has worked on paintings and objects with absurd and excessive precision. Veller is a founding member of the vocal-instrumental ensemble SEAPUTS in which he plays the guitar and sings.

festival showcase INSTAGRAM

Soft Negotiations
Exhibition of the Department of Textile Design of EKA in the EKA Gallery.

Exhibition is opened 16.10–13.11.202. Põhja puiestee 7, Tallinn. Opening hours Tue–Sat, 12–18
Opening of the exhibition on the 15th of October at 4 p.m.
The performance of Inês Rodrigues Neves “Drawing the Line” will take place at the exhibition opening. Entrance with covid pass.

Just as the warp threads connect the weft, serving as a bridge for each other, this exhibition by the Department of Textile Design invites audiences to ponder the role of textile in today’s and future society. At the exhibition, the department presents contemporary trends that often straddle or meld with the boundaries of other disciplines. That in turn creates a new, multidisciplinary approach where textile can take very different forms: it can convey structure, idea, protest, message, self-expression, pattern or simply colour combination.

The exhibition presents works by students and teaching staff of the Estonian Academy of Arts that investigate the all-encompassing role of textile design. Besides conventional roles, new hybrid forms emerge, presenting new knowledge in the context of artistic research. Emerging technological approaches are demonstrated, in which textile, interwoven with digital properties or technology at different levels, mediates collaborative processes in design of social interaction.

The exhibition has three conceptual threads, which intersect each other:

Textile as STATE(MENT)

#critical and conceptual practices

Textile as LAB

#experimental practice #flirting with science #biotextiles #new materials and structures

Textile as WELLBEING

#design that values the environment and well-being #sustainability #recycling #healthcare #social responsibility #therapy

Participants:

Frank Abner, Arife Dila Demir, Katrin Kabun, Liisbet, Karjel, Kadi Kibbermann, Mari-Triin Kirs, Kristi Kuusk + Ana Tajadura-Jiménez (Madriidi Carlos III Ülikool) + Aleksander Väljamäe (Tartu Ülikool), Krista Leesi, Kille- Ingeri Liivoja + Juulia Aleksandra Mikson, Greth-Ann Loog + Riina Samelselg + Anete Vihm, Inês Rodrigues Neves, Nithikul Nimkulrat (OCAD UNIVERSITY), Marin Nooni, Kärt Ojavee + Johanna Ulfsak, Ingrid Helena Pajo, Maria Kristiin Peterson, Piret Roos + Liisa Torsus, Zane Shumeiko, Marie Vihmar + Sirje Sasi (TLU), Piret Valk, Varvara & Mar + Sebastian Mealla, Carl-Rasmus Õunaste

Curators: Varvara Guljajeva (HKUST(GZ)), Kristel Laurits, EKA Department of Textile Design

Exhibition design: Varvara Guljajeva
Exhibition technical support: Tehniline Direktor
Graphic design: Jesus Rodriguez Santos
Translation and proofreading: Gepard OÜ
Exhibition team: Kristi Kuusk, Varvara Guljajeva, Krista Leesi, Kadi Kibbermann, Eelike Virve, Frank Abner, Juulia Aleksandra Mikson, Johannes Luik, Piret Valk

Supporter: Cultural Endowment of Estonia

Exhibition Catalogue: https://issuu.com/artun/docs/softnegotiations_catalogue_lowres

Join us for the opening of “Glass Struggle”, a solo exhibition by Sten Eltermaa on September 28, at 5.30 PM at EKA Gallery!

Glass Struggle is an ongoing artistic research project based on glass as material, paradoxically fragile and extremely resilient at the same time. Glass is used in high-security buildings, and even the Pope drives around in a vehicle protected by bulletproof glass. The semantic field of glass plays an increasingly pervasive role: these days, we are all transparent, constantly looking at our own reflections on our screens, while having virtually no access to our own delicate data, which in many ways is used to control and even enslave us.

In the context of institutions and corporations we can also talk about glass as a symbol of democracy – a reference to open and equal dialogue between the people and those in power. Likewise, it refers to corporate totalitarianism and divergence of social strata. Glass Struggle is based on the semiosis of the viewer and the seen.

The exhibition is accompanied by the online publication www.struggle.glass, which is also seen as part of one of the sculptures (“A Satellite Deviated from the Orbit”, in collaboration with Maria Lee).

Texts: Maria Lee, Sten Eltermaa

Exhibition design: Arvi Anderson, Sten Eltermaa

Graphic design: Maria Muuk

Website: Maria Muuk, Patrick Zavadskis

Translation: Madis Kuuse (ENG), Olesja Semenkova (RUS)

Thanks: Maria Lee, Arvi Anderson, Krista Loorits, Lauri Eltermaa, Sten-Erik Toos, Tõnis Vassar, Urmo Mets, Madli Ehasalu, Roman-Sten Tõnissoo, Pire Sova & EKA gallery, b210 architects, Kauss Architecture, KUU architects, Kolm Koma Architects, Ilmamaa Publishing House

Special thanks: Karmo Migur, Maria Muuk, Kadi Meriluht, Mary Magdalene

Supporters: Cultural Endowment of Estonia, MEISTRI, Salibar, Klaasissepa, joogipood.ee, nanoPruul, ÕIE, 3DLaser

The exhibition is part of the satellite programme of the Tallinn Photomonth contemporary art biennial.