About the Programme

Installation and Sculpture as a profession

Sculpture and installation art are the most prevalent art forms in public spaces. Sculpture has existed for centuries in the form of landmarks, monuments, architectural additions, and as cultural and political symbols, and finally also as independent aesthetic objects. Impacted by changes in technology, materials and the social context, this tradition-based art form has undergone tremendous changes. Today, we can speak of countless new sculptural and installational forms of expression in the public space. They all shape and mould the common public space, no matter whether the purpose is related to the provision of aesthetic solutions for decorating the urban space, to memory politics or to critical commentary. In any case, it places responsibility on the artist as the shaper of the public space. 
The demands placed on independent works of art do not differ from the demands placed on interesting art generally. Good art always speaks about the world around us, and is able to communicate, in an unaccustomed way, by telling a story that is different from the one we have heard and by revealing things from a different viewpoint. And this is true not only at a fictional or imaginary level, but also in relationship to our everyday reality. In fact, contemporary art is characterised by an awareness of the time and place in which it is created. 

Nature of the department – its philosophy and mentality

Increasingly, along with form and volume, a fundamental parameter of contemporary sculpture and installation art is space. Every three-dimensional object appropriates a part of the space around it. Thus, for the artist, an important question is what is used to appropriate the space and why.  Today, many other fields of contemporary art – within the limits of their mediums – also deal with bringing their objects into space, or with their spatialisation. And although the speciality- or medium-specific viewpoints regarding these issues are retained, the demarcation between them is no longer as rigid. It’s as if space has brought them together. However, for installation art these issues are inherent. Sculpture is directly related to the new beginnings that have resulted in these changes. It has set them in motion. Looking back in history, one can see that this spatialisation started with sculpture. From the viewpoint of learning about, and comprehending, contemporary art, this is a significant and extremely interesting phenomenon – a launching point, of sorts. It opens up a new area of activity with unlimited possibilities, which provides meaning to its relationship with the public, architecture, material and space in a totally fresh way. 

  • Focus on creation: individuality and communicativeness, social intelligence and openness, aesthetic awareness, conceptual clarity and acuity in creativity. 
  • Networking: sociability, communication within the department, supportive conversations, meetings, a common area of responsibility, international relations, trips to important art centres and biennials. 
  • Professionalism and competence: skills and knowledge, a vision of one’s work in the context of contemporary art, awareness of the predominant trends and philosophies, technical and practical preparedness.  

What are the studies like?

The study process is comprised of a gradual movement from more traditional form-based expressions to installational space-based expressions. 

  • Form
  • Volume
  • Space

Installation and Sculpture at the Estonian Academy of Arts

What are the parameters of sculpture today? 
The fundamental parameter of sculpture is still considered to be space. Every three-dimensional object appropriates a part of the space around it. For the artist, the question is, what is used to appropriate the space and why. Today, many other fields of contemporary art – within the limits of their mediums – also deal with bringing their objects into space, or with their spatialisation. And although the speciality- or medium-specific viewpoints regarding these issues are retained, the demarcation between them is no longer as rigid. It’s as if space has brought them together.  Sculpture, for which these criteria are inherent, is directly related to the new beginnings. It set them in motion. Looking back in history (which, in the case of contemporary art, dates back to the 1960s), one can see that this spatialisation started with sculpture. The artists marched out of the galleries – in the direct sense – taking the art with them. Later, when they returned to the galleries, they were already dealing with space itself, not the space between objects atop pedestals. So one could say, Minimalism brought sculpture off its pedestal, brought it into the same space with the viewer. The beginning of installation art, as a contemporary art practice, can be placed in the 1960s. From the viewpoint of learning about, and comprehending, contemporary art, this is a significant and extremely interesting phenomenon – a launching point, of sorts. It essentially opened up an area of activity with limitless possibilities, which provides meaning to its relationship with the public, architecture, material and space in a totally fresh way.

What can one expect from sculpture? 
Sculpture and installation art can be spoken of as the most prevalent art forms in public spaces. We can speak of countless new sculptural and installational forms of expression that all shape and mould the common public space, no matter whether the purpose is related to providing aesthetic solutions for decorating the urban space, to memory politics or to critical commentary. In any case, it places responsibility on the artist as the shaper of the public space. If this is taken seriously, this is a very pleasant responsibility.
The demands placed on independent works of art do not differ from the demands generally placed on interesting art. Good art always speaks about the world around us. The work of art must be connected to the world and be able to show it to me in an unaccustomed way, to tell a story that is different form the one I have heard. And this is true not only at a fictional or imaginary level. Good artists are aware of the place and time in which they create their art. 

Is material a carrier of information? Can it be used to activate what is happening in the space? 
It could be said, that in the contemporary sense, material is not but a carrier of information. In this sense, any material, which has no other function than to just pass on the form of the artist’s idea, is wasted material. It could also be said, that such material is not working to its own benefit. A title of an art object is the same kind of material. It can just hang, meaninglessly, on a particular work of art – because a work has to have a name, that’s the custom – but it can, also productively expand and communicate the meaning of the work. For the Minimalists, Untitled, as the name of a work, was meaningful, and was supposed to direct the viewer’s attention to the quality of the physical material itself. So, we can talk about different materials. After all, what is light in the case of a light installation, or sound in a sound installation? Nothing but a material with which the artist works. Sculptors and installation artists always have something to work with. There is no lack of material. 

What role does the viewer of sculpture play?
In a traditionally structured art exhibition – let’s imagine, again, sculptures on pedestals – the works of art form a row of aligned objects in the exhibition hall.  The viewer can look at them in a pre-determined sequence, by walking from one object to another. Walter Benjamin compares this method of observation to a stroller walking down the street, who, from time to time, glances to the right or left. In this situation, the viewer’s body remains outside the art; the art takes a position in front of the viewer. However, now we are talking about the past. In the case of contemporary installation art, or sculpture, the viewer often enters the space of the work of art by walking inside it – in the direct sense of the word. Therefore, the medium for the installation is the space itself, and the material is everything that is located in that space – starting from ordinary ready-made objects, and ending with the utilisation of unlimited technological possibilities, from videos to digital-tech solutions. Everything in the space becomes a part of the work because it is located in the space and, indeed, the viewers themselves became a part of the installational space. This is probably the most significant shift in the role of the viewer. The viewer becomes a participant. Contemporary art also expects the viewer to make a greater effort to understand the work, as opposed to a viewer who is just a passive consumer, or passer-by. Of course, the traditional role of the viewer, as an interpreter of the work of art, has not disappeared.