Talking Heads
I loved loved loved the Talking Heads exhibit in Kumu, the Estonian national art gallery in Tallinn. I'm pleased to say that I made it there on a day that it was open, unlike last Monday.
It's a beautiful building nestled into the side of a hill. It has a green patina, so perhaps the building was clad in copper, or perhaps it's wood. I didn't look that closely.
The building has the obligatory stramp, as does Canada’s National Gallery in Ottawa.
Back to the talking heads. Almost all of the sculpted busts are in one triangular room. Some are on the wall, others are on plinths in lines on the floor. The collection is large, as is the room.
What makes the exhibit exquisite is the soundtrack. There's a dull mumble, bringing otherwise dull heads to life. It's brilliant.
The temporary exhibit on the top floor also piqued my imagination. At the beginning and end there were two installations that made use of metal studs, the kind office builders use when making internal walls. These unfinished walls were high -- maybe 16 feet. And in the studs were collections of wrapped Kinder Surprise eggs. Sometimes there would be 10 in a row, other times two, three or five. I found it delightful. Behind these unfinished walls were works that I was less fond of. One of the major contributors to this temporary exhibit had an obsession with tongues.
After Kumu, I visited Tallinn’s Botanical Garden. Like Kew in London, it's a species garden, not a display garden. Nevertheless, the alpine plant display was charming and voluminous. The interpretive signs were well written and up to date. For example, one talked about maples being rebranded away from Ericas. I can't remember what family they are now in. Latin names are not my strength, although it came in handy, since I know some Latin names of plants at home and was able to confirm what I was looking at here.
It was a no driving day. Tomorrow, the last day I have the car, I'm going to try to find the Jagala waterfalls, and maybe make it to a nearby national park. I think I’ll write out directions before settling out.
Yesterday, I said I hadn't seen a lot of Estonians my age. Well today I discovered they hang out at the Botanical Gardens on Sundays, and they take the bus to get there. The gardens had an exceptionally small parking lot.
It's a beautiful building nestled into the side of a hill. It has a green patina, so perhaps the building was clad in copper, or perhaps it's wood. I didn't look that closely.
The building has the obligatory stramp, as does Canada’s National Gallery in Ottawa.
Back to the talking heads. Almost all of the sculpted busts are in one triangular room. Some are on the wall, others are on plinths in lines on the floor. The collection is large, as is the room.
What makes the exhibit exquisite is the soundtrack. There's a dull mumble, bringing otherwise dull heads to life. It's brilliant.
The temporary exhibit on the top floor also piqued my imagination. At the beginning and end there were two installations that made use of metal studs, the kind office builders use when making internal walls. These unfinished walls were high -- maybe 16 feet. And in the studs were collections of wrapped Kinder Surprise eggs. Sometimes there would be 10 in a row, other times two, three or five. I found it delightful. Behind these unfinished walls were works that I was less fond of. One of the major contributors to this temporary exhibit had an obsession with tongues.
After Kumu, I visited Tallinn’s Botanical Garden. Like Kew in London, it's a species garden, not a display garden. Nevertheless, the alpine plant display was charming and voluminous. The interpretive signs were well written and up to date. For example, one talked about maples being rebranded away from Ericas. I can't remember what family they are now in. Latin names are not my strength, although it came in handy, since I know some Latin names of plants at home and was able to confirm what I was looking at here.
It was a no driving day. Tomorrow, the last day I have the car, I'm going to try to find the Jagala waterfalls, and maybe make it to a nearby national park. I think I’ll write out directions before settling out.
Yesterday, I said I hadn't seen a lot of Estonians my age. Well today I discovered they hang out at the Botanical Gardens on Sundays, and they take the bus to get there. The gardens had an exceptionally small parking lot.
The Talking Heads exhibit in Kumu:
Sunday in the Botanical Gardens:
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