Gallery: Architecture students build a new landmark for Tartu from ruins
The traditional construction workshop of first-year architecture and urban planning students from the Estonian Academy of Arts (EKA) began next to the Annelinn Library in Tartu. This year's shelter, titled "Varem" ("Before"), focuses on the life cycle of buildings and reuse, offering the local community a new type of meeting place.
The shelter "Varem" tells the story of the final stage in a building's life cycle — a time when its active use has seemingly ended, but a path to a new cycle has not yet been found. While decline is usually followed by demolition and oblivion, "Varem" seeks to address this transitional phase. In doing so, the remnants of buildings are transformed into a pleasant and multifunctional structure.
The project was designed by EKA architecture student Jako Julius Schmid, whose proposal was selected from among student works developed during the studio. According to Schmid, reuse strongly shaped the shelter's appearance. "In the design process, we favored materials from a building's second life cycle over new raw materials. By giving old materials new life and meaning, the shelter encourages people to rethink what has been left behind by time and to connect the existing with the new," Schmid explained.
The structure rising next to the Annelinn Library consists of walls built from remnants of demolished buildings, with wooden benches woven through the spaces between them. According to the designer, the layout ensures that every visitor can find a suitable spot — from more private areas enclosed by higher walls to open seating where people can enjoy views of Annelinn and socialize with neighbors.
According to studio instructor Helena Männa, this year's project aims to diversify urban space. "Annelinn was, figuratively speaking, built all at once. This means it lacks the different temporal layers that make urban environments more diverse. 'Varem' is like a social experiment exploring how to create new layers of public space," said Männa.
The construction of these shelters has been part of the first-year building practice since 2006. Within the allotted time, students must prepare the site, carry out construction, and resolve any problems and conflicts that arise. For future architects, it is their first major practical project, where they engage both in developing their design into a buildable form and in the real construction process itself.
Construction work in Annelinn will take place from June 8 to June 18, and the students are supervised by Helena Männa, Elina Liiva, and Margus Tammik.
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Editor: Kaspar Viilup, Argo Ideon
