At 17 Lai (3 Aida) Street there stands a warehouse built on the site of an orchard of the Cistercian Convent. In old records it is mentioned as the "city granary", sometimes as the "warehouse". The three-story warehouse was initiated in 1683. In 1692 the building — not yet ready — went over to the possession of a town councillor Dietrich Reimers, one of the richest merchants in Tallinn at that time. It is assumed that the house was finished before the plague and famine in 1695. In 1711 the warehouse was requisitioned for garrison needs. The possession quarrel was solved only in 1737 when Russian Government bought the house from Reimers' heirs. The structure was used as a warehouse up to the early 1970s.
Unfortunately we do not know the builder of the warehouse. Differently from other Gothic buildings in Tallinn, it has a long side wall facing the street, not the fa?ade. The inner and outer side walls had almost identical structure. Inside the edifice, massive quadrangular pillars divide all the storeys into two aisles. The first floor was covered with wooden ceiling, the first and the third floors have only simple vaults. In order to move from one storey to another, a spiral stone staircase was built. Some changes in the interior were undertaken in 1823-24, the main of them being building supporting arcade for the 2nd floor wooden ceiling. No doubt that the warehouse is the most monumental among Old Tallinn's economic edifices. The renovations took place in 1970-80, while the warehouse was adapted for the needs of the Museum of Applied Arts.
The Museum of Applied Arts was opened in 18 July 1980 as a filial of Estonian National Art Museum. The collection was started in 1919 when the latter museum was created. Today the Museum of Applied Arts has about 7000 exhibits, being the biggest applied arts collection in Estonia. Although West-European, Russian and Oriental faience, porcelain and glass, a few historical furniture items are in the collection, the main part is formed by Estonian national professional applied art. Before World War II Estonian ceramics, porcelain, ornamental leatherwork and carpets were collected to Art Museum. During the war the collection suffered, all the carpets were destroyed. Active and systematic collecting of Estonian applied art began again in 1950s, and the idea to create the Museum of Applied Arts was expressed in that period. The main collection is situated in the two upper floors of the building and the collection is enlarged all the time in order to show the main trends in Estonian modern applied arts. In addition, temporary exhibits of Estonian and international works are organised in the ground floor.
Applied art and graphic art are the two parts of art that have been acquainted outside Estonia most. Estonian applied artists have since 1920s taken part in all kinds of international expos and exhibitions, also brought home prizes and diplomas. In 1960s, for instance, Estonian applied art exhibitions were organised in Finland, Sweden, Italy, Belgium, Germany, France, Poland, Hungary, Mongolia, Russia, Chechoslovakia etc. This artistic level has been achieved due to systemathical higher applied art education. In 1938 State Higher Art School was created, that was reorganised into Estonian Art Academy (Institute in Soviet period).
Estonian professional applied art has mostly three sources. Firstly, artists have used our own rich national folk art. Estonian Ethnographical Museum has very rich collections of all parts of Estonian folk art, these collections are priceless sources for all artists. Second, Baltic-German tradition and perfectionism that has its roots in guilds and craft guilds — all art must be technically perfect. And third, as Estonian folk art does not contain e.g. ceramics and leatherwork, artists had to look abroad. Northern-European countries, St. Petersburg and other cultural centres have had a great influence on the development of Estonian applied art.
In ceramics, the creator of national applied art was Jaan Koort. He preferred black and grey materials, his ceramics is optically light and airy, one may even say, oriental, and these artistic aspirations needed high temperatures. Koort was also interested varied effects of different glazings. His influence on Estonian applied artists was tremendous: until today most ceramists have remained true to high temperatures, therefore we find respect against material's ¿sthetic values in their works, forms are discreet, clear and laconic, and bright colours have not been used, that should be typical to low temperatures. Aino Alamaa has been fertile in figural plastics. The importance of detail and humoristic, to say even childish themes can be found. Mari Rääk advocates the choice of colours, close-to-nature objects with glaziers of very different tones is where she is best at. Ellinor Piipuu's works have soft humoristic attitude and folksy happiness. Another line in her creation is little acts where uses elegant form and the contradiction between dark and cyan blue. Helene Kuma was interested in creating a beautiful, but at the same time useful objects, therefore we find services, kitchen dishes, vases with graphic ornaments and nature motives.
Eduard Taska can be called the creator of modern Estonian leatherwork. He has used leather-cutting as well as leather-shaving, often metal reliefs are used besides leather. First he used ethnographic ornaments, but latter period has geometric areas separated with golden and silver lines. In 1937 he received in Paris world exhibition the highest prize — Grand Prix. Adele Reindorff was his follower, but she later turned back to ethnographic motives. When Taska liked light colours and emphasised geometric symmetry, then Adamson-Eric used bright colour gamma and seeming disorder, he has been successful in metal-art as well. Aino Lehis has created so-called leather-paintings where bright tones create lyrical moods. Elo-Reet Järv is a completely different chapter in Estonian leatherwork history — her works can be called leather sculptures.
In metal-art, we cannot avoid mentioning Otto Tammeraid, who was tireless propagator of Estonian ethnographic ornaments. His for is simple, archaism is added by rough surfaces where folk-art reliefs depict. Besides Tammeraid's "smithery" (candeliers, dishes, vases), we find Ede Kurrel, who used aluminium and copper in a sensitive way — she used nature motives, filigranly created plants, dragonflies, butterflies, turned much attention to colour of metal but less to structure of surface. Grace but still movement is seen in her "Black Butterflies". Great monumentality is seen in Salme Raunam's panneaus ("Ships come home"), but she has also created little copper metal-pictures, candeliers and tried hand in ceramics. Interesting are Enn Johannes's aluminium works. Mari Rääk is not at all interested in the bright of silver, she emphasises roughness of this metal. Intimate lyrics, tensions and brightness of moods can be found in her jewellery. Tõnu Riit advocates simplicity, colourful plastmasses are used to add decorativity.
Professor Maks Roosma is the creator of Estonian national glasswork. He worked mostly in engraving techniques where he achieved great virtuosity. Later he started to create compositions based on romantic themes and folk-legends. In Paris 1937 Roosma received a gold medal. Silvia Raudvee is one of the leading contemporary glasswork artists in Estonia, she plays on contrasts in form as well as in colour. Eino Mäelt prefers clear geometric forms, certain masculine monumentality is found in his works.
Mari Adamson's carpet "Tallinn" is one of the chef d'?uvres of Estonian textile art. She used clear laconic rhytms, sometimes even avoided colours (monochrome), what makes her works monumental. Leesi Erm used mostly folk-art examples. She has been called the greatest colorist and the most sensitive lyric of Estonian textile art. She experimented much with different materials. Ellen Hansen's works seem like peasantry woodcarvings, and this illusion is deepened by the use of monochrome. Elgi Reemets had a good understanding of light and shadow, her "Väägvere Brass Ensemble 1839" is a lyric picture of Estonia and his active men. In Anu Raud's works certain feeling of "at the fireplace" is seen, she respects tradition. Mall Tomberg's "Old Town" is rich in different techniques, movements to different directions can be seen. Many familiar objects from the Old Town are depicted. Her "Landscapes of Homeland" is interesting for golden yellow and blue-greenish colorite and the variety of facture. Strict geometric rhythms are advocated in Peeter Kuutma's works.