Recognitions of Kumu Art Museum - Art Museum of Estonia

Kumu Art Museum has gained notable international and local awards for the architecture of its building, outstanding curatorship, remarkable exhibitions and educational activities, as well as international science projects and conferences.

Meritorious Cultural Figure of Tallinn Award 2023

Eha Komissarov, the curator of Kumu Art Museum, was awarded the Meritorious Cultural Figure of Tallinn award by the Tallinn City Council. According to Tallinn’s vice mayor Kaarel Oja, it would be difficult to over-appreciate the long-time work of Eha Komissarov and her activities in the art field: „In addition to curatorial work in Kumu, Eha Komissarov has been a part of organising various key events of the local art world for decades, through which she has greatly contributed to how we are used to seeing art and what we consider to be art.“

The city council has been giving out the Meritorious Cultural Figure of Tallinn yearly award since 2008, in order to recognise the figures’ creative activities and contributions to the cultural life of the city.

Estonian Annual Museum Awards 2022

Rat Trap

The Department of Tourism of the Estonian Business and Innovation Agency recognised the Kumu Art Museum with a special award for being the first museum in Estonia who gained the Green Museum certificate. The agency’s Tourism Director Rainer Aavik commented: „Sustainability is one of the most important topics in tourism development. Museums have done a great job in popularising environmental topics with their exhibitions, but visitors in Estonia are likewise impressed by the environmentally-conscious activities of the museums themselves. … The addition of green museums likewise strongly contributes to advancing the reputation of Estonia further abroad.“

The Estonian Annual Museum Awards are a series of yearly awards given out by the Museum Council and the Estonian Museum Association in collaboration with the Estonian Ministry of Culture and the National Heritage Board.

State Cultural Achievement Award, 2022

The award was given to Kadi Polli, the director of Kumu Art Museum, and the historian Linda Kaljundi for curating the Kumu permanent exhibition Landscapes of Identity: Estonian Art 1700-1945. The permanent exhibition was opened in February 2021 and is focused on the older Estonian art as a part of the country’s multinational history, where the Baltic German, Russian and Estonian traditions are intertwined. A special emphasis is put on the role of art in society and its impact on the self-image of the various communities.

Every year, the government of Estonia gives out three State Cultural Achievement Awards in order to acknowledge exceptional long-term creative activities, as well as five awards for remarkable cultural accomplishments that have reached the wider populace during the previous calendar year.

Estonian Annual Museum Awards 2021

Science Award in the Publication Category

The award was granted to the exhibition catalogue Universe of the Farmyard: Creators of Southern Estonia, compiled by curator Liis Pählapuu and published by Art Museum of Estonia. „The catalogue of the exhibition by the same name has become a research on the cultural history of Southern Estonia from an entirely new perspective. /…/ In conclusion, a new Southern Estonian phenomenon is created in our art history of which everyone was seemingly aware, yet had never quite pieced together completely,“ the award jury commented.

State Cultural Lifetime Achievement Award, 2021

A curator of Kumu Art Museum, art historian Eha Komissarov received the State Cultural Lifetime Achievement Award. The laureate has worked in the Art Museum of Estonia since 1973, being in this century one of the creators and masterminds behind the Kumu Art Museum’s exhibition programme. She has been a teacher and instructor for many local artists and curators of the younger generation, as well as actively supported both the Tallinn Print Triennial and other important events and undertakings of the Estonian art scene. According to the Estonian Centre for Contemporary Art, she can be considered as the mother of Estonian contemporary art. The way we are used to seeing art and what we consider as art here in Estonia has, by their words, been largely shaped and influenced by Eha Komissarov.

The State Cultural Lifetime Achievement Award is the highest acknowledgement through which the Estonian government expresses gratitude and recognises people for their remarkable long-term creative achievements in the field of culture.

Annual Prize of the Estonian Society of Art Historians and Curators, 2020

The prize was granted to the legendary art historian Eha Komissarov, a curator and programme manager of Kumu Art Museum, for her long-time outstanding curatorial work and for curating the exhibition „Open Collections: The Artist Takes the Floor“ (Kumu Art Museum, 05.07-10.11.2019).

The Estonian Society of Art Historians and Curators is a voluntary and independent professional union of individuals active in the areas of art theory, art history, art criticism and curatorship.

Estonian Annual Museum Awards 2019

Conservation Work of the Year

The award was gained by the long-time restauration project of the sculptures of Estonian artist Maire Männik for the exhibition „Maire Männik. Estonian Legend in Paris“ in Kumu Art Museum (23.08.2019 – 05.01.2020). The project was carried out by the sculptor restaurators of Art Museum of Estonia, Isabel Aaso-Zahradnikova and Ales Zahradnik. The more than 100 statues by the Estonian sculptor Maire Männik (1922–2003), who had lived and worked in Paris for a long time, were given as a gift to the Republic of Estonia in 2004 by the sculptor’s son Erki Männik. It took 10 years to restore the plaster sculptures made in an untraditional technique, partially in a very large format and some of which were very severly damaged, as well as her portrait artworks and medal designs.

Eerik Haamer Art Award, 2019

The award was gained by Juta Kivimäe, the director of the sculpture collection of the Art Museum of Estonia, and conservator Isabel Aaso-Zahradnikova in connection with the exhibition „Maire Männik: Estonian Legend in Paris“ (Kumu Art Museum, August 23, 2019 – January 5, 2020) for saving and making visible the creations of Maire Männik, one of the most important Estonian refugee artists.

The award, founded by the Kuressaare City Council in Saaremaa, is aimed to recognise outstanding achievements in the field of art in the memory of the well-known Estonian painter Eerik Haamer (17 February 1908 – 4 November 1994, born in Kuressaare).

Best Designed Estonian Books of 2019

The book „Short Term Eternity“ was selected as one of the 25 best designed Estonian books of the year. The book was published as a collaboration between Lugemik and the Art Museum of Estonia in connection with the exhibition „Gordon Matta-Clark: Anarchitect. Anu Vahtra: Completion Through Removal“ in Kumu Art Museum (February 22 – June 8, 2019, graphic design by Indrek Sirkel).

The Best Designed Estonian Books contest is an annual award competition for the 25 most well-designed books and 5 most well-designed children’s books of the year, given out by The Estonian Publishers’ Association, the National Library of Estonia, the Estonian Graphic Designers’ Association and the Association of Estonian Printing and Packaging Industry with the aim to acknowledge publications most notable in graphic design and print technical realisation as a phenomenon of intellectual culture.

Estonian Annual Museum Awards 2018

Museum Rat

The Museum Rat award for the best temporary exhibition was granted to the exhibition „Michel Sittow: Estonian Painter at the Courts of Renaissance Europe“, held in Kumu Art Museum (08.06–16.09.2018) and curated by Greta Koppel (Kadriorg Art Museum) and John Oliver Hand (Washington National Gallery of Art). The exhibiton introduced the painter of Estonian heritage, Michel Sittow (app. 1469–1525), who was a highly valued portrait artist in the courts of Europe in the 15th and 16th century. 500 years later, for the first time the personal exhibition brought together all of his paintings that have survived and allowed people to see it in the artist’s hometown, Tallinn. The exhibition was extremely successful, being visited by a record number of 65 000 people. The same exhibition was also on display in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, USA (28.01-13.05.2018).

Science Award in the Events Category

The title of the best science event of the year went to the international symposium “Stories of Michel Sittow’s Life and Art. Facts and Fables” held in Kumu Art Museum (14.–15.09.2018). The main organiser of the symposium was Greta Koppel (Kadriorg Art Museum). The symposium was carried out in English and accompanied the exhibition „Michel Sittow: Estonian Painter at the Courts of Renaissance“ (Kumu Art Museum, 08.06–16.09.2018).

Estonian Annual Museum Awards 2015

Science Award in the Events Category

The title of the best science event went to Kumu Art Museum’s autumn conference „Shared Practices: The Intertwinement of the Arts in the Culture of Socialist Eastern Europe“, headed by Kumu curator Anu Allas and dedicated to post-World War II art in the Eastern European context.

Curator awards by the Cultural Endowment, 2015

The Cultural Endowment of Estonia recognises Eha Komissarov, a curator in Kumu Art Museum, with a Lifetime Achievement Award for her decades of outstanding curatorial work in the field of Estonian art and museums.

2013 Best Innovator of Foreign Language Instruction, 2013

The prize was awarded to the Art Museum of Estonia for its „Komm herein“ language immersion project. The main purpose of this acknowledgement of European language instruction is to recognise and popularise initiatives related to linguistic innovation, updating language instruction and raising the quality of teaching. Initiatives that innovatively teach foreign languages, and value and introduce other languages and cultures are recognised.

Estonian Annual Museum Awards 2012

Museum Rat

The award for the best exhibition project of the year was granted to the curators Eha Komissarov and Berit Teeäär from Kumu Art Museum for the exhibition „Fashion and the Cold War“ (13.09.2012–20.01.2013). The exhibition researched fashion and related phenomenons in Estonia in the 1950s-1970s, giving a fascinating view into the life of the Soviet Estonian woman, as well as the dialogue with Western fashion. The exhibition was accompanied by a book of the same name.

Science Award in the Publication Category

The title was gained by Elnara Taidre, a Curator of the Graphic Art Collection, for the publication „Tõnis Vint and his Aesthetic Universe“. The publication received praise for being a multi-faceted research of the ouevre and theoretical concepts of Tõnis Vint (b. 1942), one of the classics in 20th century Estonian Art. The book was published adjoining an exhibition of the same name.

Letter of Thanks from the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research

The grand prize in the 2012 national competition for educational materials in the category of applied didactics was given to a team of educators from the Kumu Art Museum for the art educational study material „Ready! Set! ART!“, compiled by Kristi Laanemäe, Anu Lüsi, Anu Purre, Elena Chekulayeva and Ingrid Putk. The competition was held by the Estonian Research Council.

Estonian Annual Museum Awards 2011

Estonian Museum Memento Award (EMMA), Second Prize

The award was granted to the product „Kumu brooch“ by Kumu Art Museum for the multifunctionality of the item as well as clever design innovation that ideally fitted the museum’s theme. The exclusive item of jewellery of Art Museum of Estonia (author: Katrin Amos) was related to the exhibition „Geometrical Man: the Group of Estonian Artists and Art Innovation in the 1920s and 1930s“ very well, and although the material is of high quality, the idea is extremely symbolic of the era, using QR-code as its motive.

Best Designed Estonian Books of 2011

„Urmas Ploomipuu’s White House“, Kumu Art Museum

The book “Urmas Ploomipuu’s White House”, written by the artist Tõnis Saadoja and designed by Indrek Sirkel, was selected as one of the 25 most well-designed books of 2011. The book was published by Art Museum of Estonia to accompany an exhibition of the same name in the Kumu Art Museum (13.4.–23.10.2011). The book included schematic drawings by Tõnis Saadoja and was praised by the jury for being „an intelligent and discreet recording of an extraordinary art project characterised by an excellent and compact use of various types of paper“.

Annual Award of the Estonian Association of Interior Architects

The annual award of the Estonian Association of Interior Architects in the category of Best Exhibition Design went to Kumu Art Museum’s exhibition „Pavel Filonov. The Russian Avant-Garde and Afterwards“ (10.06.–18.09.2011) and its room designer Terje Kallast-Luure.

Estonian Annual Museum Awards 2010

Advancer of Museum Education

The title of Advance of Museum Education was granted to Jelena Tšekulajeva, the educational curator of Kumu Art Museum, for a contemporary art educational programme carried out with the 4K method.

Estonian Museum Memento Award (EMMA), 2010

The award for the best souvenir by an Estonian museum was presented to the Kumu Art Museum for its retro-style net shopping bag, also known as avoska – one of the most typical items symbolic of the Soviet era.

Estonian Annual Museum Awards 2009

Large Museum Rat

At the annual Museum Awards competition, the prize for the best exhibition went to the Kumu Art Museum exhibition “Ülo Õun. Artist Interrupted” (19.06-01.11.2009), curated by Juta Kivimäe. The exhibition received praise for thoroughly introducing the creative nature and the oeuvre of the Estonian sculptor Ülo Õun to the public, for its emotionally affecting room design, great educational and movie programmes as well as the high-quality catalogue that accompanied the exhibition.

European Museum of the Year Award (EMYA), 2008

The Kumu Art Museum was declared the winner of the European Museum of the Year Award 2008, an award. Of the 140 nominated candidates, thirty-eight candidates from a total of 20 countries were invited to make presentations about their museums at the final event, which took place at the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin. The award in question has previously been given out to such museums as The Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao etc.

The European Museum of the Year Award is an annual award given out by the European Museum Forum, formed by the European Council.

Recognition by the European Copper in Architecture Campaign, 2007

In 2007, The European Copper in Architecture Campaign acknowledged the new building of the Art Museum of Estonia, Kumu Art Museum, for the interesting use of materials and elegant overall design of the Kumu building.
The Chicago Athenaeum International Architecture Award for Best Global Design, 2007

The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design awarded the Kumu Art Museum as one of the buildings deserving of the award for best global architectural design in the year 2007.

The „Best of 2006“ award by the Estonian Hotel and Restaurant Association (EHRL)

The members of the EHRL recognised the completion and opening of Kumu Art Museum, the new headquarters of the Art Museum of Estonia, as deserving of the „Best of 2006“ award.

The Achievement of the Year by the Estonian Union of Persons With Mobility Impairment, 2006

The token of thanks was presented to the Kumu Art Museum for providing a friendly environment for people with reduced mobility.

Nordic Pearl of Light, 2006

The 2006 Nordic Pearl of Light award was awarded to Kumu Art Museum by the Tallinn City Government for the lighting solution in the museum.

Annual Award of the Cultural Endowment of Estonia, 2006

The recipients of the Annual Award of the Figurative and Applied Arts Foundation included Tiina Abel, a curator of Kumu Art Museum, and the Kumu Education Centre.

Acknowledgement by Estonian Association of Security, 2006

The acknowledgement was given out by the Estonian Association of Security Companies for the security solution in the Kumu building, opened in 2006.

Concrete Structure of the Year, the Special Builder’s Award, 2005

An award given out by the Concrete Association of Estonia. The winners of the 2005 Concrete Structure of the Year Awards were announced at the 6th Concrete Day, held at Kumu Art Musuem. Sixteen projects were submitted to the competition. The construction firm Merko Ehitus was awarded the Special Builder’s Award for the construction of the Kumu building.