Mati Unt
An extraordinary Mati Unt Museum has opened in Kadriorg at the address L. Koidula 17.
This is the house where the writer Mati Unt lived from 1995 to 2005.
On the first floor, visitors can explore a new permanent exhibition, built around various symbols – for example, a motorcycle in the display refers to one of Unt’s key works, the short story collection Black Motorcyclist, as well as to the recurring theme of machines, cars, and a critical attitude toward technology in his writings. By “rummaging” through a giant archive cabinet, one can discover what was hidden in Unt’s desk drawers and notebooks. At the same time, the archive cabinet symbolizes Mati Unt’s passionate desire to collect facts and knowledge.
Visitors can spend more time in the “Mustamäe” section, where the windows of a panel apartment building reveal what Mati Unt and Kersti Kreismann’s salon looked like; one can listen to what Viivi Luik, Paul-Eerik Rummo, and Elo Viiding have to say about the 1960s/1970s; and delve into the meaning of the novel Autumn Ball.
The museum also displays objects that belonged to Mati Unt, books with personal dedications, and fascinating photographs.
The museum is open:
Wednesdays 11 AM – 6 PM, Thursdays to Saturdays 11 AM – 5 PM
Ticket prices:
Full ticket: €8
Discount ticket: €5
Group bookings (tours, events) are accepted from Tuesday to Friday.
To book times for educational programs, please contact: mari@kirjanduskeskus.ee
Curator of the permanent exhibition: Maarja Vaino
Interior design, graphic design, technical solutions: MOTOR OÜ
Funding: Tallinn Department of Culture and Sports, National Heritage Board
01.01.1944-22.08.2005
Mati Unt entered Estonian literature in 1963 as a child prodigy who, in the last grade of high school, wrote the novel “Goodbye, Yellow Cat”, which became one of the milestones of the literary revolution. But Unt was not the only one – at the same time, a whole number of today’s legendary authors entered literature, some of whom are among us as living classics: for example, Paul-Eerik Rummo, Viivi Luik, Arvo Valton, Jaan Kaplinski, and others. Our Mati Unt’s museum is designed to record, research, and keep relevant the entire generation of the so-called golden sixties.
However, the main focus is on Mati Unt, who as a writer and director in the years 1960/1970 changed the cultural picture of Estonia, and was a modernizer of the entire post-war Estonian literary space. In the museum, you can get an overview of Mati Unt’s Mustamäe salon and the time he lived in Kadriorg. Tartu and Mustamäe periods 1960-1970 years were a time of intense communication in Mati Unt’s life. When he settled in Kadriorg, Unt already kept more to himself. After leaving Mustamäe and before moving to Kadriorg, Unt lived in Kalamaja and Lasnamäe. According to Unt himself, Lasnamäe in particular had a bad effect on socialization as a place of residence.
A modern three-room apartment in Kadriorg was a real balm for the soul after Lasnamäe. Unt quickly developed its own lanes and places to be in the park. He loved to linger on the grass around the pond and feed the ducks. Early in the morning, Unt also loved to wander in the park. The Kadriorg’s apartment remained Mati Unt’s home until the end of his life and is currently owned by Lii Unt, Mati Unt’s widow. The windows of their former home are exactly two floors above the windows of our museum, on the third floor, facing Koidula Street.
The museum owns an extensive Mati Undi archive with documents, books, manuscripts, photos, etc. Many photos are also exhibited and provide an excellent cross-section of the cultural life of the time.
Koidula 17
Tallinn 10125
Phone: 6013 701
info@kirjanduskeskus.ee
Group bookings: mari@kirjanduskeskus.ee
Museum is open Wed 11-18, Thu-Sat 11-17.
You can get to the museum from the city center by trams 1 and 3 (Kadrioru stop) or by buses going towards Pirita (Poska stop).
You can park on Koidula street. NB! Paid downtown zone.
