In addition to donated works, pieces from the association's collection will go under the hammer from October 8 to 10. They were mostly acquired from spring and fall exhibitions featuring well‑known Estonian artists.

"We decided to put part of the collection up for sale. Certainly not everything, and a very important part will remain. But when faced with the choice of selling a studio where artists work or a painting, it is less painful to give up the painting," Samma, a member of the art infrastructure council and the EKL board, said.

Rethinking the collection

"Our plan is not to enter the auction market. This will definitely be very different from classic fall auctions. We wanted the diversity of our association to be reflected in the auction. That is why all techniques and mediums are represented," Samma added.

"These decisions had to be made. In every bad situation, you have to look for something positive. On the positive side, this gave us a chance to rethink our collection. To understand what the focus is and what it could be in the future. That also made our choices easier, because we decided to keep all works that depict artistic life or where artists portray each other, their work, their studios," he said.

Graphic works with duplicate prints will also be sold. "We will sell one and keep the other. That does not hurt us as much. Fresh works donated by artists also play a major role. Even before the decision to hold an auction, some artists contacted us and wanted to donate. That is how the idea grew. There are well‑known names from different generations," Samma said.

Sales potential considered

The association does not yet dare to estimate how much money the auction will bring in. "We certainly do not expect to cover the entire lost amount. But even part of it would be a big help. When making the selection, we naturally thought about what might have sales potential, let's put it that way. What might be popular in a good sense, what fits the market context and what is collected," he explained.

On September 18, an exhibition will open in the ARS building in Tallinn for a couple of weeks, where people can view the works headed for auction. "I recommend coming not only to those who plan to buy something, because it will be a very diverse exhibition full of good art. The auction itself will take place online and bids can be made from home. In real life, these works are still quite different."

Samma said that in some ways the crisis has already passed. "All bills have been paid, life goes on, exhibitions are happening. The first shock is over and life has normalized. At the same time, the ax is still hanging overhead, because the association has taken out a loan and that loan must be repaid. In that sense, the crisis is still ongoing."

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