Science Café “Fashion as an Embodied System: Body, Perception, and Affective Technology in Artistic Research”

/please note that the event will be in Estonian only!/

The Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre (EMTA), Estonian Academy of Arts (EKA), and Tallinn University Baltic Film, Media and Arts School (TLÜ BFM) invite you to this season’s last Science Café!

Clothing is not merely an object, but an environment that influences our perception, emotions, and behavior. This year’s final Science Café introduces artistic research that approaches fashion as an embodied system — a dynamic environment shaping the wearer’s physical and psychological experience. Drawing on concepts of embodied interaction and affective technology, we explore how material, sound, movement, and smart textiles function not only as aesthetic elements, but as sensory agents.

At the Science Café table, design, technology, body awareness, and traditional embodied knowledge come together to interpret clothing as a sensitive and responsive interface between the body and the environment — a system in which historical material practices and contemporary technology intertwine to create a new experiential space.

The discussion will be moderated by researcher Kristi Kuusk (EKA)

Speakers:

• Prof Piret Puppart (EKA)
• Prof Paula Veske-Lepp, (Tallinn University of Applied Sciences)
• lecturer and doctoral student Einike Leppik (EMTA / Milan Conservatory)

Thank you for signing up here so that we know how many people to expect!

The event is free and open to all interested participants and is supported by the Estonian Research Council’s science popularisation programme.

Exhibition opening 01.05 at 6:00 PM

Artists participating in the exhibition: Anna Ovtšinnikova, Elo Vahtrik, Fausta Noreikaite, Giulio Cusinato

Graphic design: Elo Vahtrik

Drawings: Giulio Cusinato

The exhibition explores the relationship between urban space and the individual, focusing on how environments are experienced, navigated, and internally recorded. The city is approached not as a fixed structure, but as something continuously shaped through perception, object, movement, memory, and different forms of inhabitation.

Framed as an open field of inquiry, the show invites reflection on co-existence within the limits of shared spaces of (be)longing. “Site” appears in fragments: streets, surfaces, transitions, overlooked details. “Self” emerges as observer, documentalist, and inhabitant, negotiating, questioning, and/or passing by these environments.

Extending from questions of home, spaces that function as shelters holding temporary bodies in relative safety, to public urban landscapes where that same body becomes increasingly exposed, this shift from interior to exterior reveals a tension between protection and visibility, and highlights the instability of boundaries between private and public space.

Situated within Uus Rada Gallery in Tallinn, a student-run space positioned slightly outside the main institutional circuits of the city, the exhibition also reflects on its own site of presentation. The gallery becomes part of the same spatial inquiry it hosts, where access, visibility, and movement are quietly negotiated. Rather than functioning as a neutral container, the exhibition space extends the conditions it examines, situating the works within a threshold between institution, everyday passage, and shared urban terrain.

The exhibition is open: 

01.05.2026-16.05.2026 
Fri-Sun 16:00-20:00; 
During the week, upon appointment

We thank the Department of Fine Arts for their support.

You are welcome to join “Gardenly Spots” at EKKM Garden on Saturday, 2nd of May from 11.00-17.00. 

I invite you to prolong the engagement with your clothing and textiles, walk and forage, share stories and food. During the event we will repair and regenerate worn out surfaces and support stains with bundle dye. No previous experience in mending or working with textiles is needed. Please bring your clothes that need care and something to share for lunch.

This is a third project of Marta Konovalov´s PhD research at Estonian Academy of Arts, titled Repair and Regenerative Textile Design – Nourishing Engagements and Supporting the Development of the Aesthetics of Affect.

Hoping to see you soon,

Marta

Please register here: https://forms.gle/RX8jyuGeYfBALQpD6

Working language: English and Estonian

information: marta.konovalov@artun.ee

From April 27 to May 15, EKA Library will be open from Monday to Friday from 10 to 21.

From 18 to 21 o’clock, the library is open only to students and staff of EKA.

EMTA, EKA and BFM invite you to the Science Café!

On Tuesday, 28 April at 18:00, an evening of discussion will take place at Apollo Plaza bookshop, bringing together artistic researchers from the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre (EMTA), the Estonian Academy of Arts (EKA) and the Baltic Film, Media and Arts School at Tallinn University (TLÜ BFM) to share the thinking behind their practice and research, and to explore the nature, methods and outcomes of artistic research.

This edition of the Science Café focuses on the theme “Artistic Research: Reality and Fiction”. The creative process involves imagination: the ability to envision things and bring new objects and worlds into being. The research process, including artistic research, involves argumentation, verification and the scrutiny of facts. How, then, can artistic research reconcile factuality with imagination and fantasy, which are, in essence, forms of fabrication, or the making and presenting of things in ways they ordinarily are not? This Science Café explores the connections between reality and fiction in artistic research through the interests and works of researchers from different fields.

The discussion will be held in English.

Moderator: Liis Nimik (TLU BFM)

Participants: Sveta Grigorjeva (EMTA), Jaak Sikk (EMTA), Jaana Päeva (EKA), Carlos Eduardo Lesmes Lopez (TLU BFM),

To participate, if possible, please sign up here: https://docs.google.com/…/1FAIpQLSf07GGetTWMi2…/viewform

The event is free and open to all and takes place with the support of the Estonian Research Council’s science outreach programme.

Locations: EKA Gallery (Kotzebue 1) and the EKA Monumental Studio (Kotzebue 10)
28.04.–17.05.2026
Open Mon–Sat 2–6 pm Sun 12–4 pm (NB! Closed on May 1st!)

Fine Arts Assessment Marathon

The spring assessment marathon is here! For three weeks, visitors can once again visit the Assessment Marathon of the Faculty of Fine Arts and view the student projects finalized for the end of semester: almost every day, new artwork will be on display.

Visitors can see the final works of the students from the curricula of animation, photography, graphic design, installation and sculpture, contemporary art, painting and scenography.

A new exhibition is installed almost every evening of the marathon, and the previous evening’s display is replaced by a new one the following evening.

SCHEDULE

Tue, Apr 28. Drawing, Art BA II, supervisor Tõnis Saadoja (EKA Gallery)

Wed, Apr 29. Anatomical Drawing, Art BA I, supervisor Maiu Rõõmus (EKA Gallery)

Thu, Apr 30 – Sun, May 3. Photography, BA I, supervisor Tuukka Kaila (EKA Gallery)

Mon, May 4. Abstract Drawing, Art BA I and II, supervisor Tõnis Saadoja (EKA Gallery)

Tue, May 5. Studio Photography, Photography BA I, supervisor Madis Kurss (EKA Gallery)

Wed, May 6. Drawing, Art BA III, supervisor Britta Benno (EKA Gallery)

Thu, May 7 – Sun, May 10. Contemporary Art, MA I and II, supervisors: Merike Estna, Karel Koplimets, Camille Laurelli, Sten Saarits, Anna Skodenko, Kristi Kongi, Liina Siib, Viktor Gurov, Laura Põld, Tuukka Kaila, Reimo Võsa-Tangsoo (EKA

Gallery and Kotzebue 10 Monumental Studio)

Mon, May 11. Graphic Art, BA I, supervisors Kadi Kurema, Charlotte Biszewski, Mark Antonius Puhkan, Mirjam Varik (EKA Gallery)

Tue, May 12. Painting, BA I, supervisors Kristi Kongi, Jaan Toomik, Eero Alev, Holger Loodus (EKA Gallery)

Wed, May 13. Graphic Art, BA II, supervisors Viktor Gurov, Eve Kask, Maria Erikson, Liina Siib (EKA Gallery)

Thu, May 14. Installation and Sculpture, BA I, supervisor Laura Põld (Kotzebue 10)

Fri, May 15. Animation, MA I, supervisors Lilli-Krõõt Repnau, Bruno Quast (EKA Gallery)

Fri, May 15. Art Project, Scenography BA II, supervisor Liina Keevallik (Kotzebue 10)

Sat, May 16 – Sun, May 17. Drawing, Scenography BA II, Animation BA II, Photography BA I, supervisors Lilli-Krõõt Repnau, Eleri Porrison, Mark Antonius Puhkan (EKA Gallery, the exhibition is also part of the programme of the festival Kalamaja Days).

Scenography student Ksenia Verbeštšuk’s solo exhibition at the Roosikrantsi 8b gallery.

Ksenia Verbeštšuk’s exhibition “Keep Me Warm” offers a young artist’s reflection on humanity in the context of today’s anxious and crisis-ridden world. Using a thermal camera as her primary tool, the artist observes how body heat is reflected in space and how it is retained on surrounding surfaces.

What may initially appear to be a technical device reveals itself, through prolonged artistic practice, as unexpectedly poetic—pointing to the fragility of the human body, its sensitivity to the environment, and the need for closeness.

Curator: Ene-Liis Semper
Graphic design: Jan-Markus Maasepp

The exhibition is supported by the Faculty of Fine Arts.

April 24 – August 15, 2026
Opening April 23 at 6pm

Announcing the opening of ‘Ersatz Strata’, a joint exhibition by Zody Burke (Tallinn, NYC, EKA MACA) and Klara Zetterholm (Stockholm) at Temnikova & Kasela gallery. 

The work is an exploration of a recently discovered imagined anthropological site of questionable provenance. Through reliefs, sculptures, printed work, kinetic elements, and industrial residue, the artists present an unreliable aesthetic archaeology in the language of natural history museums.

The exhibition includes a short story written by Jaakko Pallasvuo (a.k.a. Avocado Ibuprofen) with design by Taylor Tex Tehan (EKA GDMA).

The opening will include a live performance by musician and digital-age cosmogonist 011668 (Los Angeles), whose interdisciplinary work blends spirituality, consumption, and fossil fuel mythologies. The performance will occur just before twilight.

The exhibition is supported by the Cultural Endowment of Estonia.

Maria Izabella Lehtsaar’s solo exhibition In Loving Hands opens on 25 April at 13:00. Drinks for the opening will be provided by Tuletorn Brewery, and the exhibition is supported by the Cultural Endowment of Estonia.

The exhibition is open 26 April – 25 May
Keskpuur Gallery at Central Market, Keldrimäe 9 (2nd floor)

Keskpuur is pleased to present In Loving Hands, a solo exhibition by Maria Izabella Lehtsaar, bringing together experiments with media, commodity fetishism, and tattooing within the nostalgic atmosphere of the 1990s Keskturg.

With In Loving Hands, Keskpuur becomes a display window. Through the bars of the cage, three photographs hang against the backdrop of a lush pink curtain. The faded glory of Keskturg and the scent of meat create a contrasting environment for the display of something purely aesthetic.

Lehtsaar has long been drawn to photography, though it has mostly remained a flirtation. When photographs have appeared in their work, they have typically been transformed – into silkscreen or acetone prints.

With this project, the artist continues a personal exploration of commodity fetishism, which began during their master’s studies while engaging deeply with the work of Marcel Duchamp. The concept of commodity fetishism opens up a broader reflection on the commercial status of artworks and the notion of value and prosperity.

…

Maria Izabella Lehtsaar (b. 1998) is a Tallinn-based artist working primarily with underrepresented queer experiences and narratives, often playing with the boundaries between reality and fantasy. Their work combines pop-cultural aesthetics with sensitive monochrome graphics, alongside textiles, drawing, and poetry. Through the use of diverse media, familiar imagery is bent into layered meanings.

Lehtsaar holds a BA in Graphic Art (2020) and an MA in Contemporary Art (2024) from the Estonian Academy of Arts. In 2023, they were awarded the Eduard Wiiralt Scholarship. Their work has been exhibited in several duo and group exhibitions; most recently, their solo exhibition Hares Caress Your Hair was presented at Hobusepea Gallery in early 2026.

April 22 – May 23, 2026  

Gallery Pallas

On Wednesday, April 22 at 5:00 PM, Gallery Pallas will host the opening of the joint exhibition “I am Tartu and You are Tallinn,” featuring works by third-year painting students from Pallas University of Applied Sciences (Pallas UAS) and second-year painting students from the Estonian Academy of Arts (EAA). 

Tartu and Tallinn have historically been seen as rivals: Tartu as calm, bohemian, and poetic; Tallinn as the capital – fast-paced, sharp, and trendy. An invisible tension and a quiet struggle are often sensed between the two. This exhibition brings together two schools from these two cities. There was no pre-determined theme, no strict roles, and no binding agenda. Students from EAA and Pallas UAS came together out of a shared interest to see what happens at the intersection of subconscious themes, time-specific emotions, and recurring symbols. 

“I am Tartu and You are Tallinn” is not about opposition, but about overlap. It uses the language of art to show that differences do not disappear; instead, they complement each other. At the same time, it is an invitation to mix identities, allowing one city to dissolve into the other. Once the paint finally reaches the canvas, it no longer matters where you come from. All that remains significant is what is left: the thought, the feeling, the essence, and who you truly are without filters and expectations. 

Exhibition participants from Estonian Academy of Arts: Elise Muchowski, Annette Kits, Anu Jakobson, Karoline Ruusmaa, Kirke Kirt, Esther Borrett, Iris Helme, Madliin Küla, Mia Bianca Kiigemägi. 

From Pallas University of Applied Sciences: Adele Maria Arengu, Elisabet Vasur, Gerli Tafenau, Gerly Piho, Ingrid Janter, Karolin Konrad, Liisa Soolepp, Maria-Netti Purga, ÖÖ.Liibek, Nele Must, Stella Loki Leius, Hedi Kuhi, Helen Lang, Nele Luik, Delfi Oraakel, Luca Fazekas. 

Supervising tutors: Anna Škodenko, Jaan Toomik, Mart Vainre (EAA), Veiko Klemmer, Pille Johanson (Pallas UAS). 

Exhibition team: Eero Alev, Mihkel Ilus, Holger Loodus (EAA), Indrek Aavik (Pallas UAS)

Poster design: ÖÖ.Liibek. 

Press photo: Adele Maria Arengu. Sense of reality. 2026. Oil on canvas. Fragment. Photos by Maria-Netti Purga.