Gallery: New exhibition reveals inner world of Estonian poet Juhan Liiv
On Monday, December 1, a new permanent exhibition entitled "Vaimulained/vaimupained" ("Spiritual Waves/Spiritual Pain") opened at the Juhan Liiv Museum in Rupsi, Tartu County, revealing the poet's inner world.
The starting point for the new exhibition is the need everyone has to be understood.
"With this exhibition, we have tried to enter Juhan Liiv's poetic world, which is characterized by unexpected perspectives, sharp contrasts and conscious simplicity," said the museum's director Mari Niitra.
The aim of the exhibition is to bring the writer's work closer to people who are not familiar with literature, through meaningful moments.
The exhibition is located in different environments across the museum's territory: the main building, the exhibition hall, the barn that was Juhan Liiv's home, and the outdoor area. Audio and video productions, room installations and virtual reality are all used in the exhibition.
According to Mairo Rääsk, the creative director of the exhibition, the process of putting it together was far from straightforward.
"This exhibition is not an end in itself but seeks to relate to the layers and environments already present in the museum and works as a whole. For the first time in Estonia, the writer's life and work have been brought together as a sensory journey in virtual reality," Rääsk said.
One installation, for example, conveys the intensity of Liiv writing the story "Vari" in just eight days in 1892. This became a turning point in Liiv's life, as the stress triggered schizophrenia and the young writer's hopes for the future were in tatters for a long time after. The exhibition also plays with the idea of what would happen if Juhan Liiv were to visit a modern therapist, or how other people in the village where he lived might interact him today.
The exhibition, which provides an in-depth look at Liiv's work, is based on the latest research about his life and writing. One of the curators, museum researcher Tanar Kirs, will defend his doctoral thesis "Juhan Liiv in the Literary Tradition" on December 16 this year.
Juhan Liiv (1864-1913) is one of Estonia's most famous poets and prose writers.
His best-known works include "The Axe and the Forest," "Who Does Not Remember the Past (is Living Without the Future)," "To The Poets" and "I Saw Estonia Yesterday."
The Juhan Liiv Museum is in Rupsi, Tartu County. More informationa bout the museum and the exhibition (in Estonian) is available here.
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Editor: Michael Cole, Karmen Rebane
