Artists rebuild family home after devastating fire

Artists Mari and Urmas Viik rebuilt their family home in Kuivastu, Muhu, after a fire destroyed it shortly before Christmas 2020. With help from friends and relatives, they built a house a third larger than the one they lost, dedicated to their five daughters and their families, ERR’s Ringvaade programme reported.

The Viiks have spent more than 25 years creating a home on the grounds of a former manor. This year, their home was named Estonia’s most beautiful country home. Urmas Viik said the recognition reflected their organic approach to their work and life.

When the couple arrived in Muhu in the late 1990s, they found ruined barns and buildings. They began rebuilding with little money and, as Mari recalled, Urmas had just a wheelbarrow and a shovel. Over the years, the ruins of an old drying house became a gathering place for the family, while a former vegetable store was turned into a cabinet of curiosities.

The old drying house had hosted the daughters’ summers and later their families and guests. A fire broke out as Urmas was finishing a small studio. “In the evening we finished the new part of the old house, and by the next day it had burned down,” he said. The blaze destroyed 23 years of work, including his prints, installations, slides and films.

The rebuilt house, named Five Sisters’ House, has new uses for its rooms. The former kitchen is now a woodworking space, and the second floor of the old section is used for textile work. The new section accommodates all five daughters and their families. Urmas’s rare-book collection is next to the grandchildren’s space, and Mari’s 95-year-old mother, Aino, also has a room.

Urmas said he had no regrets about the new house and believes building should be enjoyable. The couple make decisions together, he said, and often disagree.