Tallinn TV Tower opens exhibition on Estonian-German cultural ties

The Tallinn TV Tower opened a bilingual travelling exhibition on August 11 exploring Estonia’s cultural ties with Germany through the personal stories of well-known people in Estonia, ERR reported.

“One language – many stories” is dedicated to the German language. The photo and text exhibition features Arvo Pärt, Jaan Aru, Ülle Madise, Harry Liivrand, Katri Raik, Luukas Kristjan Ilves, Merit Kopli, Maarja Jakobson, Mart Juur, Urmas Klaas and Mati Sirkel, among others, speaking about their connections with Germany and the German language.

The opening launches the TV tower’s programme marking the 35th anniversary of Estonia’s restoration of independence. The programme is dedicated to the August events of 1991, during which the defence of the Tallinn TV Tower played an important symbolic role.

Estonia and Germany restored diplomatic relations on August 28, 1991, which also marks its 35th anniversary this year.

“During its last 35 years of freedom, Estonia has maintained close contact with the whole world, both at the level of countries and individuals. People often fail to appreciate the role played in relations between countries by contacts in culture, education and business that emerge through interaction between individuals. This exhibition tells the story of precisely such contacts and the deep respect for another country’s culture and language that grew from them,” said Kertu Saks, a board member of the Tallinn TV Tower Foundation.

The travelling exhibition was created by the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Estonia. Kristel Trell wrote the texts, while Christian Gogolin and Iris Kivisalu took the photographs.