On 2 October, Pille Ernesaks’s solo exhibition REPLACEMENT–THERAPY–STRUCTURES will open at the Vabaduse Gallery, remaining open to visitors until 4 November.
At the heart of the exhibition is a hand-embroidered tablecloth made by the artist’s grandmother, Hilda Valentine (1908–1989), which was discovered decades later in the family’s country house barn, damaged by rats. Rather than trying to restore it to its original condition, Ernesaks subjected the cloth to a form of “replacement therapy”: missing fibres were replaced with different materials and textures, and the interventions were deliberately left visible.
For Ernesaks, the work became an encounter between two eras through a single object: a way of working alongside her grandmother rather than in her place. The artist transforms the gallery into an immersive installation in which the now personally charged old tablecloth is re-presented and recreated. The exhibition also brings to light the story of Hilda, a printing-house worker with a lifelong passion for technology and science. At the age of 66, she enrolled in a language school, while her dream of becoming a scientist ultimately remained unrealised for economic reasons.
Pille Ernesaks (b. 1966) is a Tallinn-based artist whose work combines painting, installation and material-based experiments. She graduated from the Georg Ots Music School of Tallinn in choral conducting in 1985 and from the Estonian Academy of Arts in textile design in 1998, with a qualification equivalent to a master’s degree. Ernesaks subsequently spent many years working as a production designer in television before continuing her practice as a freelance artist. Over the past decade, she has combined the physical process of painting with the experimental use of materials. Studies in furniture restoration, along with internships in southern Italy and Lisbon, have further developed her interest in bringing archaic craft techniques into dialogue with contemporary art. Ernesaks actively participates in group exhibitions and regularly holds solo exhibitions.
She is a member of the Estonian Painters’ Association, the Estonian Artists’ Association and the Estonian Authors’ Society. Her works are included in the art collections of Estonian embassies in Washington and Berlin, among others.
The opening of the exhibition REPLACEMENT–THERAPY–STRUCTURES will take place on 2 October at 5:00 PM.
On Thursday, 15 October from 5:00–7:00 PM, a tour introducing all of the exhibitions of the Estonian Artists’ Association’s galleries will be held.
The artist would like to thank her family.
The exhibition is supported by the Cultural Endowment of Estonia.
The gallery is supported by the Estonian Ministry of Culture, the Cultural Endowment of Estonia, Liviko Ltd and the City of Tallinn.
The activities of the Vabaduse Gallery are managed by the Estonian Artists’ Association.
