Category: Faculty of Architecture

Within the framework of the Open Lectures Series of the Department of Architecture and Urban Design of EKA, architect David Sim will take the stage in the hall of EKA on 2nd December at 6 pm with lecture “Soft City”.

This fall, all the lectures in the series revolve around the issue of health in one way or another. We have already looked at whether architecture as a process can be therapeutic or in its own way improve the person in the room, as well as whether and how architects can contribute to the healing of the construction world or improve the environment around us.

On 2nd December, David Sim will give a lecture at EKA, in which he will look at the main issues of his book “Soft City” – now also available in Estonian – from the perspective of health. In the book, Sim addresses today’s biggest challenges – how to ensure and improve the quality of life of people in a growing city, in the context of the climate change and the digital society through creating a quality living environment. We’ll be talking about Scandinavian human-centered and human-dimensioned urban planning, which aims to support a local, functional and sustainable – healthy – living environment. Sims addresses in parallel both social, spatial and environmental issues, juxtaposing theory and ideals with real-world examples and solutions from existing environments around the world. Listeners and readers do not need to have prior knowledge of urban planning, but on the other hand, this book makes for an effective tool for professionals dealing with the design of the built environment at different levels. Both Thursday’s lecture and the book are particularly timely because of climate change issues, offering modern solutions to make the urban environment more resilient and at the same time serving the community and people: everyday urban lives in our climate can still offer pleasure, health and joy.

NB! The lecture is preceded by public book presentation at 5 pm at EKA cafe lobby.

David Sim worked for Ralph Erskine in Sweden for many years and moved on to Jan Gehl’s architecture office in Denmark, where he also worked as a partner for many years and where the book “Soft City” was born. David Sim believes that creating a good city is like organizing a great party; the author takes a simple, humane and apt approach to complex topics.

In order to minimize the risk of the virus spreading, we will broadcast the lecture on EKA TV and it can be viewed along with all previous lectures at www.avatudloengud.ee as well as the faculty’s Youtube channel. The lecture can also be attended in-person – we do ask you to carry your COVID vaccination certificate or proof of having had COVID and cover your nose and mouth with a mask. Academy students are subject to the usual in-house rules. NB! You can’t ask questions via EKA TV, so it’s worth coming to the hall to participate in the discussion! The lecture is free and in English.

Curators: Sille Pihlak and Johan Tali.

The season of open lectures is supported by the Estonian Cultural Endowment.

On Monday, November 29, at 4 pm, Dr. Kadri Ukrainski, Professor of Research and Innovation Policy and Head of the Faculty of Economics at the University of Tartu, will give a public lecture on “Basic Concepts of Innovation: Theory and Practice” in the hall of EKA (A-101).

Innovation is a word that runs through all walks of life today, ambitiously encompassing the readiness to innovate, the creation of new values ​​and the management of these processes. In the Academy of Arts, too, innovation is something we encounter on a daily basis, but can we also make sense of its various aspects and the conscious orientation of its possibilities?

Kadri Ukrainski is an Estonian economist and professor of research and innovation policy at the University of Tartu. With her research on innovation policy, she has supported the development of research policy both in Estonia and in international organisations.

The lecture is open to anyone on presentation of a valid Covid digital certificate.
It is mandatory to wear a mask in the EKA building.
The lecture will be in Estonian.

The lecture is organised by the Estonian Association of Architects.

EKA Urban Studies programme invites prospective Master’s students to join the online info session on Thursday, December 9, 2021 at 16:00 (GMT+2).

This online info session will be a good opportunity to hear more about the curriculum, and to meet and ask questions directly from people behind Urban Studies programme. The info session will be hosted online over Zoom.

If you would like to attend, please register online through the form below. A link to attend will be e-mailed shortly before the event begins.

Registration is closed.

Recording of the session HERE.

More information about Urban Studies MSc programme:

• https://www.artun.ee/urban-studies
• https://www.facebook.com/urbantallinn

Next admissions period starts on the 1st of February 2022 and application deadline is 1st of March 2022.

https://artun.ee/admissions

More information:

Maarja Pabut
maarja.pabut@artun.ee

TO THE EXHIBITION! The students of the 2nd year of the bachelor’s study in interior architecture focussed on creating inclusive exhibition spaces, tutored by architect Johanna Jõekalda. The task of the students was to design an exhibition space based on what they had learned, which would take into account visitors with different special needs to the maximum. 

During the course, students learned to understand the principles of user-oriented design and create an inclusive environment. Spatial solutions were designed with the Estonian National Museum’s exhibition “Kaasav ELU” (“Inclusive LIFE”) in mind, which brings together different gadgets and tools that support the learning and leisure activities of users with disabilities.

In developing their spatial proposals, students used VR technologies to better understand and explain different unique user experiences: VR, allowing for immersive experiences, is an excellent tool for helping to better understand different spatial experiences and designing more inclusive environments. Students’ work was based on the principle that a room that is comfortable for people with special needs is also convenient for all other users.

During the development of the projects, the students received support from the parallel course “Digital Techniques” held at the VR Lab and supervised by Johanna Jõekalda. Daniel Kotsjuba (accessibility), Kärt Ojavee (materiality), Artur Staškevitš (exhibition solutions) and Paco Ulman (digital techniques) shared their experiences of inclusive design. The studio was conducted in cooperation with the Tallinn University “Inclusive LIFE” project, led by Tiia Artla and Jana Kadastik.

See a virtual tour of the works of five interior design students.

From early November, a selection of student works completed during the course (Laura Maria Tõru, Kätlin Lond, Triin Kampus, Anni Kõrvemaa, Viktoria Ugur) is available for everyone to see at the exhibition “Inclusive LIFE” at the Estonian National Museum in Tartu. The student work is presented on a touch screen as a virtual tour, which guides the visitors of the exhibition through more exciting space solutions and shares information on the application of the principles of inclusive design in interior architecture.

The Department of Interior Architecture of EKA would like to thank all those who contributed to the supervision of students and for the exciting opportunity to cooperate with Tallinn University and the Estonian National Museum – together we took a small step towards making the environments and premises of the future friendly to all users.

The exhibition will be open until January 31, 2022, so onwards to Tartu!

Alphabetizing the Matrix of Discomfort. The Open Lecture Series presents: Matteo Cainer

As part of the Open Lectures series of the Department of Architecture and Urban Design of EKA, practising architect, curator and educator Matteo Cainer will take the stage in the hall of EKA on November 4th, 6 pm with lecture “Alphabetizing the Matrix of Discomfort”.

This fall, all the lectures in the series revolve around the issue of healing in one way or another. Let’s look at whether architecture as a process can be therapeutic and in what way inhabiting space could be restorative – and simultaneously, whether and how architects can contribute to the healing of the construction world. On November 4th, we’ll kick off by discussing how to approach architecture in a now changing world – what kind of a vocabulary might architects need for the emerging future. Matteo Cainer will be walking us through three architectural / research projects, from their inception, in relation to their concept and environmental, architectural and social aims, as a means of proving a sort of evidence and support to the three lines of research/interests that he and his practice share: converging ecologies, resilient adaptive re-use and social weaving.

Prior to opening his own practice MCA in 2010 in London, Cainer worked and collaborated with a number of celebrated international practices including Eisenman Architects in New York City, Coop Himmelb(l)au in Vienna, and Arata Isozaki Associati in Milan. In 2004 he was Assistant Director for the 9th International Architecture Biennale METAMORPH, in 2006 Curator of the London Architecture Biennale CHANGE and in 2018 curator of the Dark Side Club in Venezia. 

In 2011, Cainer moved to Paris where he was Associate professor and HMONP director at the École Spéciale d’Architecture and it was there that he created and directed the “Pavillon Spéciale” series. It was also in Paris that he conceived and hosted “Architecture Whispers” and in 2013 co-founded and co-directed with Odile Decq the Confluence Institute for Innovation and Creative Strategies in Architecture in Lyon. In 2018, Cainer moved back to London and was nominated curator for the 7th Edition of the Dark Side Club for the International Architecture Biennale in Venezia. Today, he remains a regular visiting critic at both Westminster and the AA. In March 2020, to respond to the pandemic, Cainer launched MCA Online, a free educational initiative to provide lectures, teaching, and support to home-bound students, and at the end of the year, he opened MCA in Milan, Italy.

The work of Matteo Cainer and his practice has won various awards and has been published in numerous books and international magazines; it has also been featured in various international exhibitions among which the Royal Academy in London and the Pisa Architecture Biennale. Matteo has also lectured and written and edited a number of books and articles in the field of architecture and design, and his studio featured in numerous books, international magazines and was selected as one of the 25 significant emerging international practices at the London Architecture Festival.

In order to minimize the risk of the virus spreading, we will broadcast the lecture on EKA TV

 and it can be viewed along with all previous lectures at www.avatudloengud.ee. However, the lecture can also be attended in-person – we do ask you to carry your COVID vaccination certificate or proof of having had COVID; there will be no on-site testing. Academy students are subject to the usual in-house rules. NB! You can’t ask questions via EKA TV, so it’s worth coming to the hall to participate in the discussion! The lecture is free and in English.

Curators: Sille Pihlak and Johan Tali.

The season of open lectures is supported by the Estonian Cultural Endowment.

On November 3 at 3 pm, the results of the three-year Unfinished City research project will be presented in the form of a thorough 400-page publication of articles, interviews, maps and projects, titled “Unfinished City. Tallinn’s urban visions”. The parties who have contributed to the completion of both the research project and the book, will gather for event at the lobby of EKA, where you will also see a selection of scaled models and an animation which were prepared for the Unfinished City exhibition at the Estonian Museum of Architecture this spring. Both the research project and the book were completed with the support of the real estate company Kapitel.

The publication summarizes the discussions held during the three-year research project and is intended for everyone interested in thinking about Tallinn’s potential as a city of the future – what we expect from Tallinn in the future, what the city needs and what problems it has to overcome in order to be attractive both as a place to live and work.

25 authors from Estonia and elsewhere look at Tallinn’s potential from the perspective of architects and urban planners, dissecting the city as a whole and paying attention to key places. Separate chapters deal with the spatial future of Lasnamäe and other similar residential areas of the Soviet era, the potential of the bastion belt area surrounding the Old Town, the green areas of Tallinn and the blue/water network. In more detail, it is examined in which background system of rules, permits and statistics urban planning in Tallinn takes place, in comparison with other cities in Europe with a similar profile and size – Vilnius, Helsinki, Zurich, Copenhagen, Prague and Riga. In addition, it is asked how we could plan a better Tallinn using all the numerical data that can be collected about the city today with the help of technology.

In cooperation with Garage48, EAA, TSENTER and the Estonian Science Council, the fifth Garage48 Future of Wood will take place in 2021. It calls for the development of innovative and climate-friendly solutions in architecture, wood processing and forestry.

In November 26-28, FoW will take place again in Väimela, TSENTER competence center, where Garage48 Future of Wood started.

The prize fund is over 10,000 €. In addition, catering, TSENTRI fleet and materials, mentor support and spacious workspaces that support intensive creative teamwork and prototyping for 48 hours. All this with the aim of bringing together the Estonian wood industry in one room and looking to the future. How to manage forests more sustainably? How to use production residues and value wood?

More information on the event website

Facebook event

Register HERE

See you in Väimela!

Presentation of workshop results and talk on the potential of urban interventions.

“Reports from the field” is a presentation of the workshop results of the MA Urban Studies students from the Estonian Academy of Arts and a talk on creating urban interventions as a research method, but also as a civic exercise and public right.

The presented projects will review and reflect the process of constructing vernacular interventions and their reception in Tallinn. Topics included in the presentation concentrate on infrastructure, public space, care, maintenance and social responsibility on the examples of the T1 mall, unpaid female labor in Majaka, private security in public space and new cycling lanes among others. There will also be a presentation about EKKM’s role in public space and a display of the interventions. 

You are very welcome to take part in this talk and contribute to the discussion on the role and responsibility of urban intervention. The event is in English.

The authors are: Kush Badhwar, Yu-Li Anne Boonen, Khadeeja Farrukh, Timothée Girault, Christian Hörner, Nabeel Imtiaz, Marie Lucet,  Agota Maziliauskaitė, Dorothea Müller, Luca Liese Ritter, Zeno Schnelle, Paul Simon, Nora Soo, Akvilė Stundytė, Katrin Tomiste, Paula Kristiāna Veidenbauma, Friederike Zängl.

Studio lead: Mattias Malk

As part of the Open Lectures series of the Department of Architecture and Urban Design of EKA, architectural critic and urbanist Konstantin Budarin will take the stage in the hall of EKA on October 14, 6 pm with a lecture “Infrastructure of Care: The Past, Present, and Future of Soviet Leisure Heritage”.

This fall, all the lectures in the series revolve around the issue of healing in one way or another. Let’s look at whether architecture as a process can be therapeutic and in what way inhabiting space could be restorative, Simultaneously, whether and how architects can contribute to the healing of the construction world. However, some of the lectures in the series – as well as the October 14 lecture – look directly at the architecture created especially for landscape of care.

Konstantin Budarin is a member of the architectural collective Kultura and one of the initiators of the research project Sanatorium Premium – the focus of the latter is on the Soviet-era recreational infrastructure and the development of its possible uses today. The sanatorium architecture of the so-called Eastern Bloc has become a social media hit in recent years, viewed as an archaic curiosity with aesthetic pleasure, without delving into the role of sanatoriums in the operation of large-scale industry, or how a recreational machine worked to oil the human cogs of a production machine. The spatial programme of any sanatorium was led by prescription procedures, and Budarin asks – what procedures and what space would we need today to stimulate exhausted bodies and burned out minds? Do we have anything to learn from the sanatorium system in the Eastern Bloc?

Konstantin Budarin is the author of numerous publications on architecture and urbanism published in Strelka Mag, Calvert Journal, Project Baltia, and others. He is an alumnus of Strelka Institute for Media, Architecture and Design 2014/15.

In order to minimize the risk of the virus spreading, we will broadcast the lecture on EKA TV and it can be viewed along with all previous lectures at www.avatudloengud.ee. However, the lecture can also be attended in-person – we do ask you to carry your COVID vaccination certificate or proof of having had COVID; there will be no on-site testing. Academy students are subject to the usual in-house rules. NB! You can’t ask questions via EKA TV, so it’s worth coming to the hall to participate in the discussion! The lecture is free and in English.

This lecture takes place in cooperation with the Estonian Museum of Architecture and is part of the Future Architecture programme 2021. Future Architecture is the first pan-European platform uniting architectural museums, festivals and other development organisations in the field, bringing the public closer to both the cities and the future of architecture. The lecture is supported by the European Union’s Creative Europe Programme.

Curators: Sille Pihlak and Johan Tali.

The season of open lectures is supported by the Estonian Cultural Endowment.

Event in Facebook

Read more about the project: https://futurearchitectureplatform.org/projects/fb47b9a7-2d22-44fb-ae41-c292af573953/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sanatorium_premium/?igshid=2vsox2u8jewe