Estonian Academy of Arts

The Estonian Academy of Arts is the only public university in Estonia offering higher education in fine arts, design, architecture, art culture and conservation. Located in Tallinn, it is an active study and research institution and the leading national centre of innovation in visual culture. Studies take place in a new award-winning building with an innovative and inspiring environment.

Nearly 1,200 students currently enrolled at the Estonian Academy of Arts are taught by 118 professors, associate professors, teachers and lecturers from Estonia and abroad. Small groups of carefully selected students enable a more personal, one-on-one approach to instruction and family-like, close-knit atmosphere. EKA prides itself on the low student-to-professor ratio.

EKA offers 6 international MA programs: Animation, Contemporary Art, Graphic Design, Interaction Design, Urban Studies and Design & Crafts (specialisations: ceramics, glass, jewellery and blacksmithing, textile, accessory or fashion design). In addition, there is a Design&Technology Futures MSc (joint program with TalTech) and Literature, Visual Culture and Film Studies MA (joint program with Tallinn University). We also offer 2 PhD programmes - Art & Design and Architecture & Urban Planning.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, the Estonian Academy of Arts has been an important centre of Estonian art education. The Estonian Art Society founded the Tallinn Applied Art School in 1914, which offered general education and professional training in art and crafts.

Upon drafting the curricula, the St. Petersburg art school Stieglitz — which concentrated on teaching technical and practical skills — was used as a model. In 1924 the school became the State Applied Art School, providing education in all the traditional disciplines of applied arts, and visual arts disciplines were added to its programme in the 1930s. In 1932 the school moved to a new multi-stage school type, and it became possible to apply for a diploma of a specialist or applied artist.

The school was renamed the State Industrial Art School in 1938. In 1944 the school was renamed Tallinn State Applied Art Institute of the ESSR. As a result of the centralisation of art education system in 1951, all studies were transferred from Tartu to Tallinn, architectural studies were added, and the name was changed to the State Art Institute of the Estonian SSR (SAIE, Estonian abbreviation ERKI). In 1989, ERKI was renamed to Tallinn Art University, and since 1995 its name has been the Estonian Academy of Arts.

Admissions requirements for MA programmes: https://www.artun.ee/en/admissions/masters/admissions/

Admission requirements for PhD programmes: https://www.artun.ee/en/admissions/doctoral/admissions/

EKA has close ties and cooperation agreements with more than 150 international universities and many international networks, through which student and faculty exchanges can be negotiated and apprenticeship opportunities can be expanded. EKA is a member of CUMULUS (International Association of Universities and Colleges of Art, Design and Media); EAAE (European Association for Architectural Education); ELIA (The European League of Institutes of the Arts), and through NORDPLUS is a member of many professional networks.

Since 1999, EKA has been a member of The European Commission’s Lifelong Learning Programme for Higher Education, Erasmus, under which more than 100 bilateral exchange agreements have been signed. In addition to the Erasmus programme, the Estonian Academy of Arts has entered into student and faculty exchange and cooperation contracts with ten internationally recognised art universities outside of the European Union.

In addition to remarkable library and gallery, EKA has a long list of workshops and studios which are open to all EKA’s students. Workshops can be used during working hours at times that the facilities are not in academic use. Workshops include: Modelling Workshop, Woodworking Shop, Metalworking Shop, Smithy, Prototyping Lab, Sculpting Studio, Scenography Studio, New Media Sound Studio, Digital Lab, Digital Darkroom, Painting Conservation Studio, Sculpture Conservation Studio, Analogue Darkroom, Graphics Studio, 3D Lab, Textile Printing Studio, Knitting Studio, Weaving Studio, Sewing Studio, Jewellery Workshop, Enamelling and Stone Cutting, Accessory Studio, Bookbinding Studio, Ceramics Workshop, Glass Workshop.

• EKA is an island of freedom. EKA encourages innovation and experimentation, and students are able to take modules and workshops outside of their specialisations. Have an idea? Try it! You’ll find there’s refreshing lack of red tape here. Those who study at EKA soon discover a wide spectrum of possibilities.
• The lecturers and instructors are professionals in their field – internationally recognised artists, architects, designers, historians, and scholars who provide unique, individualised study and personal mentorship in a synergistic atmosphere.
• Small groups of carefully selected students enable a more personal, one-on-one approach to instruction and family-like, close-knit atmosphere and EKA prides itself on the low student-to-professor ratio (3:1).
• EKA has a new inspiring building, full of modern workshops, innovative studios and other facilities for our students and staff