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“From Beetroot to Washing Machine” is a nominee for the 2024 Museum Marketing Achievement of the Year Award

The commissions for the Estonian Museum of the Year Awards have selected the nominees for this year’s Museum Rat Awards. The event brings together the top performers in the museum field to celebrate creativity, innovation, and dedication. The winners will be announced at the award ceremony on February 7th in Tartu.

This year, 115 applications were submitted to the Museum of the Year Awards in ten categories, with the most popular categories being Exhibition of the Year (18), Community Friend of the Year (17), and Promoter of Museum Education (16).

The Museum of the Year Awards is the most significant recognition in the Estonian museum landscape, aimed at drawing attention to the valuable work museums do for their communities and visitors. The nominees represent outstanding initiatives and projects that enrich Estonia’s cultural heritage. Their selection is an important step in increasing the visibility of the museum field and recognizing the people who help preserve and revitalize our history and culture.

“The nominees this year highlight important themes such as improving accessibility and addressing mental health, showing the efforts of museums to engage all visitors. Also worthy of mention is the implementation of innovative immersion language programs that support the understanding and teaching of the Estonian language and culture. Cooperation between several museums and specialists from various fields highlights an interdisciplinary approach, enriching the museum experience and offering new perspectives. The selected nominees demonstrate how museums can not only be guardians of history but also address contemporary social challenges,” said Darja Jefimova, the chief specialist of the museum field.

MARKETING ACHIEVEMENT OF THE YEAR

Estonian Natural History Museum: The Incredible Adventures of Händkak in the Natural History Museum or the Formula for Becoming Famous

Estonian Road Museum, Tartu City Museum, and Estonian Agricultural Museum: Marketing and Communication of the Collaborative Exhibition “From Beetroot to Washing Machine”

Estonian Sports and Olympic Museum Foundation: Olympic Hotel. Hotel Rooms of the Estonian Sports and Olympic Museum at the Kääriku Sports Center

The winners will be announced on February 7, 2025, at the Museum of the Year Award Gala at the Tartu Kammi Factory, preceded by a traditional conference. The event is organized by the Tartu City Museum and TYPA. The awards are presented by the National Heritage Board in collaboration with the Estonian Museum Association and the Estonian Cultural Endowment.

For more information about the competition, click here.



‘WASHING MACHINE MADE OF BEETROOT’ pop-up exhibition reaches Riga audiences

On Friday 13 September, the pop-up exhibition ‘Washing Machine Made of Beetroot’ will hold an opening event from 16:00-18:30 on the 4th floor of the Galerija Centrs shopping centre (Audēju iela 16) in the Latvian capital Riga.

The exhibition, which has toured Estonia and Valmiera, will include an exciting programme of activities for all ages led by representatives of the Estonian Agricultural Museum and Tartu City Museum.

‘Washing Machine Made of Beetroot’ is a satellite project of the exhibition of the same name, which is the largest in Southern Estonia and. It forms part of the main programme of Tartu 2024 – European Capital of Culture and is a joint project of three museums: the Estonian Road Museum, the Estonian Agricultural Museum and Tartu City Museum. The exhibition is all about invention, ingenuity, recycling and a do-it-yourself way of thinking.

WHAT EXCITING THINGS CAN YOU DO AT THE OPENING EVENT?

  • Sew patterns with a sewing machine
  • Make cards with ink made from beetroot
  • The ‘Washing Machine Made of Beetroot’ triathlon: ride a bike, play hopscotch and darn a sock
  • Guess the ingredients in preserves
  • Play photo dominoes and a language game (in English)

There will be prizes for the winners!

The exhibition itself is all about invention, ingenuity, recycling and a do-it-yourself way of thinking. Participants will have a unique opportunity to ride a bicycle with a generator, examine fascinating exhibits placed inside an historical sideboard and read interesting recollections of Soviet-era inventors and inventions.

The exhibition is FREE OF CHARGE and is open to visitors until 20 October. It will then return to its birthplace, Tartu.

The exhibition is in Latvian and English.

The three-part exhibition ‘Washing Machine Made of Beetroot’ will be open in all venues until the end of 2024.

Sub-exhibitions:

For more information, see https://peedistpesumasin.ee/en/.

JOINT TICKETS TO “WASHING MACHINE MADE OF BEETROOT” EXHIBITION NOW AVAILABLE ON PILETILEVI„

This joint ticket to the exhibition “Washing Machine Made of Beetroot” is valid for all three exhibitions at the Estonian Road Museum, Tartu City Museum and Estonian Agricultural Museum.

The exhibits are accompanied by texts in Estonian and English.

For more information visit peedistpesumasin.ee

The joint ticket can be used to visit all sub-exhibitions once during the exhibition opening hours between 24 April 2024-29 December 2024.

Single ticket €24
Family ticket €48
Buy tickets HERE

The exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue in Estonian and English which is available for purchase at the ticket offices of the museums.

MEMENTOS

A range of unique mementos has been created for the ‘Washing Machine Made of Beetroot’ exhibition.

In addition to the bilingual exhibition catalogue, a number of items showcasing the exhibition’s visual identity are available from the shops at the Estonian Agricultural Museum, the Estonian Road Museum and Tartu City Museum. For example, you can buy yourself a beautiful tin or ceramic mug, invigorating beetroot sweets, humorous and adorable fridge magnets, beautiful postcards or a specially designed T-shirt.

Browse the selection HERE.

30. October – 02. November 2023

“WASHING MACHINE MADE OF BEETROOT” EXHIBITION CATALOGUE NOW IN MUSEUM STORES

The “Peedist pesumasin”/“Washing Machine Made of Beetroot” exhibition catalogue can be found at ticket offices of the Tartu City Museum, Estonian Agricultural Museum and Estonian Road Museum.
Price: €10

“Washing Machine Made of Beetroot” is a collaborative project between the Estonian Road Museum, Estonian Agricultural Museum and Tartu City museum and is composed of three sub-exhibitions. The stories of invention, ingenuity, recycling and DIY of the three museums are bound into one in the “Washing Machine Made of Beetroot” exhibition catalogue, introducing the topics of each exhibition.

Tartu City Museum
“Washing Machine Made of Beetroot: Resourcefulness in the City” shows the creativity and resourcefulness that urban Soviet citizens had to possess. Nothing was readily available in stores in the Soviet Union, and if it was, it was unattractive and of poor quality. Clothing, accessories, furniture, consumables, etc. often had to be crafted by the people themselves. The deficits and conflicts of needs made people creative and thrifty.Estonian Agricultural Museum
“Washing Machine Made of Beetroot: Resourcefulness in the Countryside” displays the ingenuity of people living in the country. During the Soviet era, every resident of a farm or kolkhoz centre had a small garden that helped cover the table during food shortages. Valuable components were purchased from scrapyards and farm repair shops, and the so-called “men with golden hands” pieced together tractors and other machines using these parts. Garden produce was processed at home – people made preserves, jams, juices and were always on the lookout for new and exciting recipes.

Estonian Road Museum
“Washing Machine Made of Beetroot: Ingenuity on the Road” introduces the audience to various self-made solutions that aided Soviet citizens in travelling from point A to point B. The DIY technical culture and garage innovations thrived, with the operational principles of the internal combustion engine being a universally understood language. This exhibition explores inventions, innovation, creativity, recycling and the DIY culture within the motor world of the Soviet Union, as well as the yearning for a modern and comfortable life.

The catalogue is in Estonian and English and includes numerous illustrations.

Compiler and editor: Marge Rennit
Designer: Maarja Roosi
Texts written by: Madle Uibo and Meeli Väljaots (Tartu City Museum), Kaire Ilula, Monika Levkin, Merlin Lumiste and Mari-Liis Tammiste (Estonian Agricultural Museum), Paavo Kroon and Andres Seene (Estonian Road Museum)
Editor of Estonian texts: Ene Nagelmaa
Translators: Martin Jaigma, Piret Hion, Luisa Translation Agency

The exhibition project “Washing Machine Made of Beetroot” is part of the European Capital of Culture Tartu 2024 main programme.

30. October – 02. November 2023

Conference „Sustainability in Practice: DIY Repair, Reuse and Innovation“

Is organised by the Estonian National Museum in collaboration with the Washing Machine Made of Beetroot joint exhibition project, concentrates on sustainable do it yourself (DIY) practices, solutions and lifestyles.

Repair, reuse and repurpose of diverse commodities and materials, and vernacular innovation, are today increasingly perceived as part of sustainable consumption culture. Facing the global climate crisis, we are looking for lessons to learn from the past and present, for more sustainable and resilient ways of life.