Collections

The ETDM collection focuses on 20th century and contemporary Estonian applied art and design and consists of nearly 17,000 pieces. It includes collections of textiles, ceramics, porcelain, leather-work, glass, jewellery and metalwork and design, and archival material.

The establishment of the collection dates back to 1919, when the Estonian Art Museum was founded, which also included a collection of applied arts. In addition to Western European applied art, which was transferred to the foreign art collection of the Art Museum of Estonia (opened in 2000), the museum housed the works of Estonian applied artists, mainly ceramics, leather-work and carpets. Unfortunately, much of it was destroyed during World War II. The active and systematic collecting of Estonian applied art began again in the mid-1950s. In 2000, design was incorporated into the collection for the first time. Since 1995, contemporary art has been added to the collection with the financing of the Estonian Cultural Endowment.

A significant part of the collections are exhibited as part of exhibitions at the museum.

The collections can be accessed through the Museums Public Portal (MuiS).

The museum’s collections are constantly being digitised. Access the digitised material via the photobank.

Information about the collections:

Head of Collections Helen.Adamson@etdm.ee