A traveling exhibition about Estonia that celebrates the country’s centenary is to visit North America over the course of one and a half years.
According to the organisers, the exhibition, called “Masters of Our Own Homes: Estonia at 100” is the largest of its kind and will visit four cities in North America. The exhibition will first open on the West Coast, at Stanford University, where it will be displayed as part of a major Baltic studies conference taking place from 1-3 June. From Stanford, the exhibition will travel to Toronto, Canada; Boston, MA; and Washington, DC.
The exhibition with light installation is 39 feet long and 12 feet high and weighs four tons. Each of its 244 exhibition panels shows a part of the Estonian story. The exhibition was created by the Museum of Occupations as a gift for the centenary of the Republic of Estonia, in cooperation with schoolchildren, entrepreneurs, artists and museums in Estonia and abroad.
“The idea for this kind of traveling exhibition was born in communication with Estonians abroad, in order to make it possible for them to be part of celebrating Estonia’s 100th birthday,” the project manager of the exhibition, Keiu Telve, said in a statement. “The exhibition pavilion not only tells the story of this small country but also gives you a real sense of being in Estonia. The picturesque landscapes, smiling faces of the Estonians and their stories help to bring the Estonia’s story to life. The exhibition can be seen as a miniature Estonia traveling to audiences who cannot visit Estonia itself.”
The exhibition will be displayed at Stanford University from 31 May until 6 June with its official opening ceremony taking place on 2 June. The opening event will feature a roundtable, “No Boundaries: An Oral History Project about Estonia’s Transformation in the Digital Age,” in which Sten Tamkivi, Ott Kaukver, Rainer Sternfeld, Andrus Viirg and Toomas Hendrik Ilves discuss Estonian innovation, identity, history, and future.
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Cover: The installation at the Tallinn’s Linnahall (images by Tõnu Tunnel).
