Tartu Art House

PRESS RELEASE

25.07.2025

Artist

Statement

“From Mother to Daughter, From Daughter to Mother” at the Tartu Art House

On Friday, 1 August at 5:00 p.m., the exhibition “From Mother to Daughter, From Daughter to Mother” will open in the large gallery of the Tartu Art House. The exhibition is being curated by Ulla Juske and Liisi Tamm and designed by Cloe Jancis.

The exhibition is dedicated to Reet Varblane (1952-2023), art scholar, mother, grandmother, friend, colleague, mentor and inspiration. 

The relationship between mother and daughter is multi-faceted, changing over time, combining a deep bond and an individual separation that makes it complex but infinitely rich. The works in the exhibition are inspired by personal objects and stories that allow us to make sense of the relationship between mother and daughter. 

“Personal objects are artefacts that act as social archives, carrying relationships, values and history, evoking emotions and bringing memories to life,” explain the exhibition´s curators.

In addition to the artworks, the exhibition will feature stories of Tartu women collected by ethnologists from the University of Tartu, where personal objects will be used to reflect on the relationship between mother and daughter and the values and behaviours passed down from generation to generation.

Artists participating in the exhibition are Cloe Jancis, Ulla Juske, Satu Kalliokuusi, Maris Karjaste, Flo Kasearu, Eve Kask, Aet Ollisaar, Piia Ruber and Liisi Tamm.

The exhibition is supported by the Cultural Endowment of Estonia, the City of Tartu, the Pallas University of Applied Sciences and the ethnologists of the University of Tartu.

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In this exhibition, I explore themes central to my practice: my Finno-Ugric heritage. My works are created using meaningful materials such as old textiles, self-made plant inks, coffee, natural pigments, and recycled canvases — allowing the materials themselves to carry the narrative.

As the firstborn, I grew up emotionally distant from my mother. She was not well prepared for motherhood. This distance followed me into adulthood. I now understand that she carried transgenerational trauma rooted in war and hardship. About fifteen years ago, she developed Alzheimer’s disease. For a brief time, it allowed us a closer emotional connection, but today she no longer recognizes me.

After my father’s death, I inherited my mother’s kapios—traditional textiles she had made for her future. Many had never been used. I realized that this tradition had not been passed on to me; instead, I inherited something unfinished, echoing our relationship.

Yet the story does not end there. I have begun to carry this heritage forward and pass it on to my own daughter.