Four artists and researchers join museum photo archive residency

Four artists and researchers have been selected for the Estonian National Museum’s international residency focused on its photo archive, ERR reported. Their six-month joint research project will result in an exhibition opening in February 2027.

The selected residents are Estonian installation artist Jevgeni Zolotko, Paris-based artist and designer Nicolas Mimault, Spanish filmmaker and anthropologist Claudia Barthelemy Rojo, and French architect, photographer and urban researcher Élisabeth de Bézenac.

The Estonian National Museum selected the residents through an international open call. A total of 261 artists and researchers from 53 countries applied. The museum’s exhibitions committee assessed the clarity and quality of the proposals, their connection to the museum’s photo collection, the candidates’ critical approaches and their readiness for long-term collaboration.

From September 2026 to February 2027, the four residents will work with a shared selection of material from the museum’s collection of more than 400,000 photographs. The archive, which ranges from glass negatives to digital images, documents everyday life, material culture and social changes in Estonia.

Their joint research, workshops and collective curatorial decisions will lead to an exhibition created together. It will open on February 24, 2027, in the museum’s 742-square-metre temporary exhibition hall and remain open until September 19, 2027.

“No photograph or photo archive is neutral. What is photographed, who does it and in what way are shaped by very different personal, cultural, historical and technological circumstances,” Karin Leivategija, a researcher at the Estonian National Museum and the residency’s coordinator, said.

“The same applies to which photographs enter an archive, what is preserved, and how the material is described and made accessible. Four people notice different things when looking at the same collection. The challenge and value of the residency lies in bringing all these perspectives together in one jointly created exhibition,” she said.

Each resident will receive a creative grant of 10,000 euros from the Estonian National Museum. The museum will also provide access to the archive, as well as substantive and organisational support for creating the exhibition.

The residency is part of the Estonian National Museum’s ERMX special programme, which marks 10 years since the opening of its new building in Raadi. The programme brings together international exhibitions and new opportunities to participate, discover, reflect and create at the museum.