Family of artist Enno Hallek donates his works to the Art Museum of Estonia

TALLINN – Camilla Hallek, the daughter of exiled artist Enno Hallek, and Sirje Helme, director general of the Art Museum of Estonia, signed a donation agreement in Stockholm, under which thirteen of the artist's works from 1990–2010 will join the museum's collection.

In honor of the artist's last wish—Hallek was from a fisherman's family near Haapsalu—the Art Museum of Estonia will offer museum classes to children living outside Tallinn, who lack the same level of access to cultural institutions as their peers in the capital.

"The gift from Enno Hallek and his family to the Art Museum of Estonia is very special to us, as we have always wished to add Enno Hallek's works to our art collection. Although our collection includes a significant number of paintings and graphics by Estonian exile artists, we have had only a few of Hallek's works until now. It is the museum's duty to introduce Hallek's work in Estonia and to establish his importance in our art history. An exhibition of the donated works will open at Kumu in May," said Sirje Helme, director general of the Art Museum of Estonia.

Enno Hallek, who died in Stockholm on December 31 of last year at the age of 94, was born in Rohuküla, Lääne County, in 1931 and left Estonia for Sweden as a boat refugee in 1943.

Hallek received his art education at the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm, where he later worked as a professor of painting. Actively participating in Swedish art life from the 1960s, Hallek became one of Estonia's most significant exiled artists, whose importance extends beyond the Estonian diaspora.

Hallek is known for his paintings that combine conceptual thought and social sensitivity, centered on brightly colored plywood objects equipped with handles.

Thanks to his Swedish art education and the democratic society surrounding him, Hallek developed into an artist with innovative views, convinced that everyone can be an artist and a recipient of art. In Sweden, Hallek is also known for his public artworks: for example, he created the mosaics for a triumphal arch in Stockholm and the design for the Stadion metro station.

"One of Hallek's last wishes was that the works inspired by his happy childhood in Rohuküla would return to his homeland. Thanks to the artist's family, this wish is now coming true, and the Art Museum of Estonia's painting collection will be enriched with works from Hallek's peak period series 'Portable Sunset' from 1990–2005 and 'Fractals' from 1990–2010. Hallek's international fame is based precisely on these series, which have recently been exhibited in Berlin and other European art cities," said Liisa Kaljula, head of the museum's painting collection.

The general public can see Hallek's works at the exhibition 'Enno Hallek. Portable Sunset Forever', opening on May 28 in the project space on the fourth floor of the Kumu Art Museum. The exhibition will remain open until October 18.