We know Estonia
18.9.2022 | Culture

Exhibition -“A Book Designer’s Studio. Jüri Kaarma and Late Soviet Graphic Design” has opened at EDTM in Tallinn

Text Mark Taylor
Photos Evert Palmets

Exhibition -“A Book Designer’s Studio. Jüri Kaarma and Late Soviet Graphic Design” has opened at EDTM in Tallinn

 

Yesterday a new exhibition opened at the Estonian Museum of Applied Art (EDTM). The exhibition, “A Book Designer’s Studio. Jüri Kaarma and Late Soviet Graphic Design” offers a glimpse into the material reality of graphic design history, which is today mostly forgotten.

“Nowadays, graphic design is with us at every turn, and everyone is a graphic designer. Taking and editing photos, selecting fonts and colours, making collages, designing and printing used to be exclusive pursuits, requiring time, special skills and collective effort. With the digital revolution, they have become routine procedures for anyone with a computer,” explained Maria Muuk, the curator of the exhibition. 

 

Maria Muuk and Eve Kask

 

Just a few decades ago, even the simplest design shot could mean several hours in a photo lab, microscopic cut-and-paste jobs, calls and letters to the publishing house and printing house, 300-degree molten metal, numerous proofs and wild consumption of materials.

“However, young designers or users of digital design tools no longer remember this recent history, and not much research or preservation has been done, especially in the Soviet context,” notes Muuk. “The exhibition takes the first steps to rediscover, understand and rethink this heritage in today’s context, to allow a better appreciation of the achievements of design history – or indeed to perceive as such even the most everyday prints and designs born as a result of a highly collective effort.”

 

Aadam Kaarma

 

The authors of the exhibition, Maria Muuk, Anna Kaarma, Aadam Kaarma and Eve Kask, created the exhibition based on the rare and comprehensive process archive preserved in Jüri Kaarma’s (1950–2011) apartment studio in Lasnamäe.

Jüri Kaarma has become known, for example, as the author of designs for Vikerkaar magazine, Loomingu Raamatukogu and encyclopedias. His confident late modernist typographic handwriting has shaped thousands of prints since 1974. Their designs were born in late-night studio sessions, with the help of rubber glue, a scalpel and a photo enlarger, which Jüri used as an upside-down camera. The exhibits highlighted in the exhibition vividly explain the restrictions that existed in the design profession during the late Soviet era and the ingenuity born within them.

At a time when many of the current digital-obsessed generation are yearning for alternatives to automated tools and standards, diving into the technological history of graphic design is a breath of fresh air. The exhibition raises the question of what results experimenting with historical design tools could lead to today.

The exhibition will also be accompanied by a programme of events that you can learn more about on the museum’s official site here.  

The exhibition, “A Book Designer’s Studio. Jüri Kaarma and Late Soviet Graphic Design” will be on display in the Staircase Gallery at the Estonian Museum of Applied Art (EDTM) in Tallinn until November 13. 

 

 

 

To learn more about this and similar topics
Design EDTM Estonian Museum of Applied Art Graphic Design Jüri Kaarma Soviet Design Soviet Graphic Design Tallinn

19.3.2024 | Culture

Megadeth’s David Ellefson to perform in Tallinn

Megadeth’s David Ellefson to perform in Tallinn

Grammy-winning bassist and co-founder of the iconic metal band “Megadeth David Ellefson is set to perform at Helitehas in … Read more

18.3.2024 | Culture

Exciting events in Estonia this week

Exciting events in Estonia this week

21.02–30.03, Pärnu Fotofest 2024, Pärnu 07.03–23.04, Tribute to Queen, around Estonia 09.03–18.05, December Rain Ballet, Tartu 18.03, Yann Tiersen … Read more

16.3.2024 | Culture

Tickets for the Food Film Festival now on sale

Tickets for the Food Film Festival now on sale

This year’s Food Film Festival, which will take place from April 10-14, will take food lovers on journeys to … Read more

15.3.2024 | Culture

Celebrate Maslenitsa this Saturday at the Estonian Open Air Museum

Celebrate Maslenitsa this Saturday at the Estonian Open Air Museum

This Saturday, March 16, you will be able to celebrate and learn about the Christian traditions of Maslenitsa at … Read more

14.3.2024 | Culture

World-class funk music comes to Estonia

World-class funk music comes to Estonia

The vibrant FinEst Funk Festival, which promises to bring a fusion of funk, soul, and jazz melodies, will take … Read more

14.3.2024 | Culture

Rakvere to host its very first contemporary dance festival

Rakvere to host its very first contemporary dance festival

The inaugural Rakvere Contemporary Dance Festival KANTS is set to take place from March 15-17. The new event marks … Read more

13.3.2024 | Culture

The Rolling Stones to rock Kumu 

The Rolling Stones to rock Kumu 

Martin Scorsese assembled a dream team of cinematographers to capture a Rolling Stones concert at the Beacon Theater in … Read more

13.3.2024 | Culture

Erkki-Sven Tüür’s “Tormiloits” to be the centerpiece of a concert

Erkki-Sven Tüür’s “Tormiloits” to be the centerpiece of a concert

The Vanemuine Symphony Orchestra will perform Erkki-Sven Tüür’s “Tormiloits” at two concerts in Estonia this week. The first in … Read more