Established in 1914, the Estonian Academy of Arts is the only public university in Estonia providing higher education in fine arts, design, architecture, media, visual studies, art culture, and conservation.

The EAA is striving to become a leading international centre of innovation in the field of visual culture.  Currently there are more than 1 200 students enrolled in the Academy, with many participating in exchange programmes at international partner universities. In addition to active study and research activities, the Estonian Academy of Arts also offers lifelong learning opportunities through the Open Academy.

The Estonian Academy of Arts collaborates with more than a hundred universities worldwide and belongs to several international higher education networks.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, the Estonian Academy of Arts has been an important centre of Estonian art education. The Estonian Art Society founded the Tallinn Applied Art School in 1914, which offered general education and professional training in art and crafts.

Upon drafting the curricula, the St. Petersburg art school Stieglitz — which concentrated on teaching technical and practical skills — was used as a model. In 1924 the school became the State Applied Art School, providing education in all the traditional disciplines of applied arts, and visual arts disciplines were added to its programme in the 1930s. In 1932 the school moved to a new multi-stage school type, and it became possible to apply for a diploma of a specialist or applied artist.

The school was renamed the State Industrial Art School in 1938. In 1944 the school was renamed Tallinn State Applied Art Institute of the ESSR. As a result of the centralisation of art education system in 1951, all studies were transferred from Tartu to Tallinn, architectural studies were added, and the name was changed to the State Art Institute of the Estonian SSR (SAIE, Estonian abbreviation ERKI).  In 1989, ERKI was renamed Tallinn Art University, and since 1995 its name has been the Estonian Academy of Arts.

Address:

Estonia st. 7 / Teatri sq. 1, Tallinn 10143

Contact:

E-mail artun@artun.ee
T: +372 626 7301
F: +372 626 7350
Skype: kunstiakadeemia