Exhibitions

Roman-Sten Tõnissoo and Ellen Vene dive into the medieval darkness in Draakon gallery

Roman-Sten Tõnissoo & Ellen Vene will open their co-exhibition If This Is Light, Then Give Us Darkness in Draakon gallery at 17:00 on Thursday, May 4th, 2023.

Exhibition will be open until May 27th, 2023.

If This Is Light, Then Give Us Darkness, the co-exhibition of Roman-Sten Tõnissoo and Ellen Vene, serves as an ongoing collaboration between the two artists. Their distinctive styles exchange locations, reflect each other and create new forms of dialogue.

Through site-sensitive artwork, Tõnissoo and Vene attempt to disentangle and redefine visuals from fantasies that stem from one’s desire to escape into alternative environments from the restless quintessence of the world. Relying on technological development, the practice of referring and sampling has established itself even more firmly in visual culture – and therefore, the perception of contemporaneity is increasingly complemented by a collage of fragments from different eras. During pivotal times, one often yearns for magical archaism, a concept based on the imaginary, fragmented past. With their current exhibition in Draakon gallery, located in the heart of the old town of Tallinn, the artists observe the Middle Ages as a platform where all kinds of ideas and ideals can be projected. Examples of recycled medieval aesthetics, symbols and milieu are found in every field of culture – music, fashion, fiction, games and films. The darkness of the Middle Ages seems to be an alternation to the flickering light of screens reflecting modern despair.

Roman-Sten Tõnissoo (b. 1989) has graduated from the department of photography (BA) and contemporary art (MA) at the Estonian Academy of Arts, and has also studied at FAMU, Film and TV School in Prague. The focal point of his artistic practice lies in the quest for spirituality and purpose in contemporary society, and in the fragile connections between aggression and the sense of security. The artist’s cross-media work methods refer to and search for spatial moments of dialogue, including the potential to visualize new possible future perspectives. Among his recent exhibition projects are “Your Afterlife Is Cancelled” together with Ellen Vene in ARS Project Space (2022), “Out of Sight Is Out of Mind” together with Ellen Vene in ROAM Project Space in Berlin (2022) and “Dreams in Unfreedom” together with Sven Parker in the Monumental Gallery of Tartu Art House (2022).

Ellen Vene (b. 1990) has obtained BA in the department of sculpture and installation and MA in contemporary art at the Estonian Academy of Arts, and additionally studied at the University of Applied Arts Vienna and Central Saint Martins College in London. The core of her installative artistic practice includes strategies based on cultural and art history while illustrating the ways how historical systems and roles are reflected in the present. Among her recent exhibition projects are “Exercises for Dreamkeeping” in TYPA gallery (2022), “Your Afterlife Is Cancelled” together with Roman-Sten Tõnissoo in ARS Project Space (2022), “Out of Sight Is Out of Mind” together with Roman-Sten Tõnissoo in Roam Project Space in Berlin (2022).

Exhibition is supported by the Cultural Endowment of Estonia

Exhibitions in Draakon gallery are supported by the Cultural Endowment of Estonia, Estonian Ministry of Culture and Liviko Ltd.

Introducing the “Etiquette of digital collaboration: Designers Speak Up” – A showcase of emerging design students’ creative synergy in different design practices.

Periods of uncertainty and the ongoing transition towards a more sustainable future have normalised remote work and the concept of “alone together”, greatly affecting how designers, artists, architects, and other creatives collaborate. This exhibition is a testament to the power of such collaboration, bringing together the learnings from courses held in Tallinn (EKA), Saint-Étienne (ESADSE), and Schwäbisch Gmünd (HfG) for a project called “Digital Tools for Creative Collaboration”.

During the project, the students of the three schools explored the impact of the trend towards digital collaboration. We took their learnings and used ChatGPT 4.0 and other AI tools to turn them into a vivid twister experience. The twister features eight themes, each of which delves into a different aspect of teamwork, communication, and the design process:

1. Stay Human

2. Design with Intent

3. Use Cyber Manners

4. Embracing Differences

5. Improving Workflows

6. Teaming Up

7. Practice Effective Communication

8. Exercise Discipline

Each theme encompasses a range of concepts and ideas, with the students offering their unique insights and experiences. As a whole, the exhibition highlights the importance of empathy, openness, and effective communication in fostering a productive and creative team environment. It showcases the students’ commitment to personal growth, pushing the boundaries of traditional design methodologies, and embracing the challenges of working across disciplines and cultures.

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The expo will be open in the EKA ground floor lobby every day on 2–7 May.

On display:

200 tenets of effective digital collaboration, analysed with the help of ChatGPT 4.0 from the produced course materials and reflections by participating students and mentors.

22 interviews with students and mentors participating in the project.

Participating students:

Maëlys Bard, Max Becht, Sarah Boutière, Paulina Juárez Badillo Chávez, Sigmund Abou Chrouch, Artemiy Guslistov, Hugo Guyomard, Ludovic Hohl, Mathias Hû, Kristi Laanemäe, Tara Monheim, Alféa Morelli, Daisy Muntean, Natsumi Nonaka, Alina Remlinger, Marius Schairer, Viki Schmidt, Kaisa Uik, Yaren Duriez Urías, Mark Uustalu.

Participating mentors:

Cléa Di Fabio (Esadse), Jérémie Nuel (Esadse), Damien Baïs (Esadse), François Brument (Esadse), David-Olivier Lartigaud (Esadse), Lucile Schrenzel (Esadse), Marc Guntow (HfG Schwäbisch-Gmünd), Ludwig Kannicht (HfG Schwäbisch-Gmünd), Tanel Kärp (EKA), Jekaterina Suharenko (EKA, Jonn Galea (EKA).

Exhibition design:

Ottavio Cambieri, Jekaterina Suharenko, Anastasiia Grigoriadi, Tanel Kärp, Nesli Hazal Akbulut, Oliver Kanniste

Exhibition “Etiquette of digital collaboration: Designers speak up” is organised by IxD.ma.

The department of Photography of EKA is welcoming you to the screening of two recently awarded Estonian films – “Hippodrome” by Vladimir Loginov and “Dear Passengers” by Madli Lääne.

The screenins are held in the EKA main lecture hall A-101 next Thursday, April 27th, at 6 p.m.

In Helsinki, Ene-Liis Semper’s (professor of EKA Scenography) project “Untitled” premiered with the theater graduates of the Theater Academy there in the Pasila black-box theater of the local City Theater Kaupunginteatteri.

It is an original play, which, according to Enel-Liis Semper, is to some extent a sequel to the play “72 days”. The similarity is that images were used and the material does not contain verbal dialogue.

EKA scenography students Anita Kremm and Liisamari Viik were assisting the director.

Ene-Liis’ long time collaborator Jakob Juhkam is the composer.

The performance “Untitled” lasts about 1 and 3/4 hours, which, according to the author, guarantees the return from Helsinki to Tallinn on the last ferry.

The play will not be played for long, because “Untitled” is a graduation play.

More information

Author’s text:

Over the course of the years, I have discovered I am mostly drawn to things that, for some reason, refuse to be given a name. These things are interesting to me because they refuse to be fully described or are too special or abstract or obvious to be captured by words. As an artist, I aim to bring these unnamed moments to the stage as they are, without any explanation, so that people can experience them as I did. I am curious to see if and how others will receive and interpret these moments.

To me, the performance composition needs to escape linearity and the feeling of a natural flow of time. That´s why I collect the material working from photography, paintings and frozen poses, and then I assemble them together in different weird ways, that somehow despite being strange, remind me of life in its rawness. These unnamed moments I create are a reminder for me of our actual condition as human beings. I as a subject exist among infinite stories that happen simultaneously in the present moment. Beyond my subjective limited perspectives, and my constant effort to reduce life to something I can hope to make sense of, all moments of existence manifest themselves in extremely weird, absurd deeply touching shapes.

The reality I seek is often overwhelming and incomprehensible, yet provokes in me (and hopefully in the audience) an unconditional empathy that can transport me to a meditative state where reality and its impressions somehow become available.

On Thursday, April 27, exhibition “On the other side, from other things” by Riin Maide will open in Tallinn Art Hall Gallery. Exhibited installations focus on the potential of absent spaces and the temporary beauty.

“On other sides and other things” is a visual exploration of places that don’t actually exist. Using materials such as paper and fabric, for four days Maide creates (and recreates) an environment through which spatial footnotes can be experienced.

“With every good spectacle, I have almost always been more fascinated by what lies behind it. The romantic in me finds the nostalgia and sad beauty of abandonment in empty storefronts, despite the cruelty of capitalism. A disappearing moment that I would like to capture.”

Riin Maide (1997) is an artist and scenographer who lives and works in Tallinn. In her practice, she deals with memory and presence through playful installations and staged environments. Her work can be often characterised as site-specific, ephemeral and reliant on graphic imagery. In addition to exhibitions, she also works as a curator, performer. She has also participated as stage designer in several performances, both in Estonia and abroad. Maide graduated in 2020 with a degree in graphics at the Estonian Academy of Arts, Faculty of Fine Arts (BA) and is currently studying scenography (MA). In addition, she has studied at the Department of Alternative and Puppet Theater at DAMU in Prague. Riin has received the Edmund Valtman and the Eduard Wiiralt scholarships, as well as the EKA Young Artist Award in 2020 and the title of Newcomer in Graphics in 2022.

Artist would like to thank:
Estonian Cultural Endowment,
Estonian Academy of Arts, specially Department of Scenography,
Christo and even more Cristo
Friends who help make things happen and of course Tallinn Art Hall

The exhibition is open:
27.04-30.04.2023
14:00 – 19:00
Tallinn Art Hall Gallery
6 Vabaduse Square, Tallinn

The display is part of a series of art events “Porno” taking place at the Tallinn Art Hall Gallery.

Additional information on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ornokevad

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p.o.r.n.o_k.e.v.a.d/

riin.maide@artun.ee
+372 5343 7533

On April 22 at 6:00 p.m., EKA animation students Elis-Hetty Leppik and Rebeka Kruus will open the exhibition Come on in, coffee is still hot at Vent Space Gallery.

The exhibition invites viewers to enter the animator’s apartment, where everyday life is intertwined with colorful creations.

The exhibition will remain open until April 28. Every day, 2–7 pm.

Sidney Lepp residency exhibition “Leave the keys outside..I know these doors, I know these windows..doors, windows..day of open doors..open doors day..window closed – door open, door closed – window open..each window is a door?”

Kanal gallery is attended by interdisciplinary artist Sidney Lepp, who started a month-long residency in the Liiva-ATE in early April. To experience the exhibition process, everyone interested will be able to meet the artist in Kanal gallery in April. The exhibition exhibits behind-the-scenes of the art field and opens to viewers how the production of the exhibition or project takes place – why and based on what are choices made; how to get the exhibition to the gallery and how the artist developes during the process.

The artist considers it to be the most important part to show an otherwise invisible fragment of the exhibition – process, preparations, production. Usually the audience is directed to consume the artist’s final work, and without context and numerous co-texts it is difficult to read it. This time, the window is opened right in the middle of the creative process. It is possible to see how ideas and nuances that influence the result arise. By becoming part of the process, it is possible to interact with the work of the gallery as well as the activities of the artist.

The exhibition focuses on the artist’s ideas, discussions, activities of installers and the gallerist, and their interpersonal dynamics. The exhibition exhibits opinions that influence the process. The project gives the participants the opportunity to see the exhibition in the special stages of its emergence, becoming aware of a possible lack of motivation or, on the other hand, a creative outbreak. In any case, the situation may be interfered with if desired. The aim is to show sincerely and honestly how much work, failures and successes accompany the production of one exhibition.

The documentation of the two-month process contains topics that have proved to be current in society during this period, later serving as a time capsule as a reminder of this moment.

The idea is inspired by William Grieve’s cult (documentary) film series “Symbiopsychotaxiplasm 1-3.”

Visual introduction to the exhibition.

Sidney Lepp (1994) is a fluidum that adapts very quickly to the (art) scene. Most of the time, he handles the space in an installation and grafts onto the works such features as to be as interactive as possible. Sidney is a graduate of the EAA in fine arts with a BA and a MA in contemporary art. His current playing field has been Tallinn, Riga, Berlin, Kiev and Brussels.

http://sidneylepp.com/

8.04 Kunstiministeerium

https://cca.ee/ajakiri/mida-motlevad-noored-kunstnikud

The exhibition will be open until 3 June 2023.

Graphic design: Henri Kutsar

The exhibition is supported by the Cultural Endowment of Estonia and Võru linn

Kanal gallery

Liiva 11a, Võru, 65609

Mon-Fri 12-17 Sat 12-15

FB: Kanal galerii

IG: Kanal galerii

Additional information:

Mari Škerin / gallerist

mariskerin@gmail.com

+372 53449447

Vaim Sarv Live Performance @ Entropy Gauntlet (EKA Gallery) on Friday, April 14, 7 pm.

As part of the programming for the Entropy Gauntlet group exhibition, performance artist and experimental musician Vaim Sarv (EE/USA) will be playing free, using voice and electronics to respond to the exhibition themes revolving around the porousness of post-western notions of national identity and it’s haunted histories.

Free admission!

Artists:
Gabrielė Adomaitytė (Lithuania/Netherlands, 1994); Māris Ārgalis (Latvia, 1954–2008); Milla Aska (Finland, 1993); Marikki Hakola (Finland, 1960); Madlen Hirtentreu (Estonia, 1993); Elvyra Kairiūkštytė (Lithuania, 1950–2006); Miska Kukkohovi (Finland, 2001); Daria Melnikova (Latvia, 1984); Rait Prääts (Estonia, 1952); Anna Škodenko (Estonia, 1986); Viktor Timofeev (Latvia/US, 1984); Justinas Vilutis (Lithuania/France, 1991)

Co-authors:
Anders Kreuger (Sweden/Finland, 1965); Jaakko Pallasvuo (Finland, 1987); Miša Skalskis (Lithuania/Finland, 1994)

Kunsthalle Kohta, Helsinki

Opening 12.04, 6pm

“For some reason they thought this exhibition should be titled Amber. Amber could be a natural resource, a souvenir, a wall colour, or a way to accidentally preserve mosquitos full of dinosaur blood, making Jurassic Park possible. 

They are imagining this curator. Her name is Amber. She is on a Baltic-Nordic tour, taking the long trip from LA to Vilnius, making her way through Riga, Tallinn and Helsinki to look for inspiration. Afterwards – Ibiza, for fun and romance.

Maybe Amber is from a tiny spa town with an air of mystery. Shallow Springs, Wyoming. Shallow Springs, Arizona. She has left town, she has made it in the art world, but what happened in Shallow Springs is haunting her dreams.

On her way across the Baltic-Nordic zone Amber sees what other curators were not able to see. This survey of the region is not giving her the typical post-Soviet archive, austere-but-cozy Lutheran interiors, mystified relationships to lichen or strained X-is-the-new-Berlin coolness.

Amber is having a great time. These sites appear lavish and bewitching to her. Maybe it is her presence that makes them so. She is dancing. People think too much, she tells herself. Her new Baltic friends offer her a super-slim cigarette. Is it a Vogue? she asks. No, a Glamour, her friend responds.”

Info

Participants:
Marie Kanger,Marion Laev,Agnes Isabelle Veevo,Gréta
Þorkelsdóttir,Paula,Xingpei Shen

Tutor:
Zane Shumeiko

Time:
05.04.-14.04.2023
09:00-20:00

Graphic design:
Gréta Þorkelsdóttir

The exhibition Stitch-Sensory-Story displays student work created during the Experimental free-motion machine and hand embroidery course, offered by the Textile Design department in spring 2023.

The course explored the techniques and processes of experimental stitching on various materials and surfaces using free-motion machine and hand stitching techniques.

It investigated the participants’ sensory experiences (tactility, visual, auditive, smell and others) during the making process and after. Each student produced their own personal stitched (memory, emotion, physical, sensory) story.

Each work is accompanied by the students’ written text about their
experience.