News & Events
How Can I Help the Environment?
We opened "How Can I Help the Environment" exhibition on the 19th of January and celebrated the occasion with two workshops and cake! Located in front of the Miller Hall on the fifth floor of the National Library of Estonia, it will be open to visitors until the 20th...
Cupcakes and Potato Printing – a Delicious Way to Start our Workshops!
On the 12th of January we officially opened Labora Workshops for Children located at Laboratooriumi 25, Tallinn. We started at noon with free workshops, during which our visitors could try out letterpress printing, papermaking, and outdoor stop-motion animation. In...
Labora Workshops for Children Grand Opening!
Please join us for the grand opening of Labora Workshops for Children on the 12th of January at Laboratooriumi 22. You can join our free workshops from 12:00 to 15:00. You can try out new workshops in animation, printing, and papermaking. Afterwards, we will all go...
Exhibition Opening in the National Library!
In the autumn of 2018 we organised twelve Creative Makers workshops, during which children and their parents had the opportunity to make paper by hand, print with letterpress and prepare stop-motion animations. The overall theme of our creative work and discussions...
61 days. My Internship at Labora.
During my studies in Interior Design at a German university, I often felt like anything which didn’t involve a computer was not very popular amongst the students. At the start of a project you had to do some hand sketching and build models, but most students tried to...
Creative Makers Workshops Done – for Now!
We're happy to announce that our November run of Creative Makers workshops are done! Our last free workshop took place on the 30th of November. The time spent with around 300 children was not only enjoyable, but also educational - for as as well as for the...
Romanian National Contest of Calligraphy
We are happy to have supported the Romanian National Contest of Calligraphy 2018 organised by the Freedom for Education Culture and Sport organisation. This year's theme was designing a book cover. The level of calligraphy as well as the originality, composition, and...
Labora Workshops for Children Continue!
So far, we have organised eight Creative Makers workshops, during which children and their parents can make paper by hand, print with letterpress and prepare a stop-motion animations - all within three hours. The overall theme of our creative work and discussions are...
Internship at Labora – I finally got my letter from Hogwarts
Hi, I am Masha, 26. I’m originally from Russia and I’ve been living in Tartu, Estonia, for 6 years now. If everything goes well, I’m going to graduate from Tartu Art College (Kunstikool Pallas) and get a BA degree in Media and Advertisement next spring (2019). I went...
First participants at Labora Workshops for Children
Last Friday we invited our first participants to Labora Workshops for Children. Families showed up to try out printing, make their own paper by hand and create a stop-motion animation. The theme of the month is Children’s rights as a way to celebrate the Universal...
Labora Workshops for Children!
Join us for our late October and November workshops for children! We are preparing the opening of our Labora Workshops for Children. Here, children can develop their creative skills and together explore the traditional arts of printing, typography, and papermaking,...
Bloom and Memories from Tallinn
Photos and text by our former intern Egle.
Labora is taking part in Prügiteadlaste päev this Saturday in Tartu!
Each year the Teadlaste Öö Festival adds new and exciting events to its plan. This year's newcomer is "Prügiteadlaste päev", which takes place on the 29th of September at the Science Centre AHHAA. This event focuses on reducing and re-utilizing garbage production and...
The New Poetics of Endangered Species: Estonia
On Saturday, September 15, 2018, Tallinn’s Ukrainian Cultural Center and its Labora Workshops will present their new book known as the Poetics of Endangered Species to honor Estonia on her 100th anniversary and to celebrate the diverse beauty of her flora and fauna....
Where Old and New Meet
The Creative Makers partners met for a fourth time this June in Vilanova i la Geltrú – a marvellous harbour city near Barcelona – thanks to our hosts Neapolis. Neapolis means “New City” in Greek. It’s a fitting name for their organisation, as Vilanova itself is...
What Is Creative Makers? Short videos with answers!
Creative Makers project member are discussing philosophical questions: What is Creative Makers? What is letterpress? Does print touch our everyday life? And what childhood activity brought us towards art?...
Matteo’s Internship Full of Sketching
In Labora I found a place of great inspiration and extraordinary people. They taught me a lot about printing techniques and gave me the opportunity to develop my personal work. Initially, I did not have a clear idea about what artwork to create. I started off by...
Ars Littera 2018 Exhibition Opening
Everyone is welcome to our exhibition opening on Saturday, June 2nd, 2018 at 3 PM in Grusbeke Tower (Laboratooriumi 33)! The opening will feature a performance by the talented musical group Rondellus. You can also learn how to make your own calligraphy pen...
Open Workshop: Seed Paper Making and Printing
Join us for three hours of fun on Wednesday 06.06.2018 at 5:30 PM. The workshop consists of two parts: Part 1: Seed paper making (As our handmade paper dries for up to three days, you will use our stock seed paper for the second part of the workshop. You can pick up...
A Brush With Silence
Calligraphy is just so much more than beautiful writing. It is an art form which brings together gracefully shaped letters in harmonious composition. It is a channel for language, filled with history and stories. Calligraphy requires both practice and...
Museum Night 2018 at Labora
Join our Ukrainian Cultural Center and Labora staff for an exciting activity-filled evening! Be sure to bring your entire family as there will be activities for everyone to do from learning about something new … to making something new with your very own hands. Our...
Invitation to A Brush with Silence
A Brush with Silence is a meditation in calligraphy and silence. It has been conceived to bring together calligraphers from many different cultures in the silent intensity of their writing. Working together in one large, darkened space, the calligraphers manifest...
Letterpress Workshops Inside Historic Walls
Labora recently hosted the third Creative Makers partner meeting in Tallinn’s historic Old Town. As none of our guests had visited Tallinn nor Estonia before, we also introduced them to various Estonian customs and showed them several of Old Town’s hidden gems during...
Support Us: The Poetics of Endangered Species
The Ukrainian Cultural Center in Tallinn has launched a crowd-funding campaign to republish a new and improved facsimile edition of The Poetics of Endangered Species book! Read the whole story, watch the video, and support us here! Why are we...
Exhibition: Calligraphy by Heino Kivihall and his Students
The exhibition features the calligraphy works of Heino Kivihall, his students Tatiana Iakovleva and Anu Karjatse, and the students of the Tallinn School of Calligraphy. Heino Kivihall says: "A calligrapher is not a machine. She works slowly. Her hand and...
Tallinn Laboratoria: The Full Course
Do you know that feeling you get when you‘re having friends come over for a visit? Especially those who live a long way off and only show up once in a while? That’s the feeling we had when we welcomed Alexander Vasin and Natalia Velchinskaya, graphic designers and...
Printing Dublin
If you ever find yourself in Dublin, make sure to step away a bit from the busy city centre and go to the quiet old military barracks where you'll find the National Print Museum. Just a short 15 minute walk will lead you to this wonderful museum full of historical...
Creative Makers Project Starting!
Kids’ fablabs for letterpress & printing inspired by tinkering and making Labora is taking part in an exciting project promoting letterpress printing! The aim of the Creative Makers (CREAM) project is to create fablabs for children aged 3 - 11; one in each...
Biodegradable Reusable Bag by Nikolas
Speaking of eco-friendly products, seed paper is definitely one of them. Seed paper is made by hand from 100 % recycled paper and while it is made, seeds are added directly into the paper pulp. The thought is simple - seed paper cards are meant to be enjoyed and later...
Anna’s Internship at Labora
I did my internship at Labora as a part of my design studies. I was expecting something unusual even before the internship - and I got exactly what I was searching for. A special place where I could get inspired by the people and their culture. I also took it as a...
Call for Course Participants: Calligraphy, Paper, and Letterpress Interact
FREE SPACES STILL AVAILABLE! Labora workshops are a place where calligraphy, papermaking and letterpress printing meet and interact. Join us for a week of learning and experimenting with all three of them! Special focus will be given to calligraphy under the...
Ars Littera 2017
Calligraphy exhibition "Ars Littera - 2017" will be open 2 June - 1 September 2017 in Grusbeke Tagune Tower in Tallinn Old Town The exhibition opening will take place on 2 June at 17:00 in Grusbeke Tagune Tower (Laboratooriumi 33). Taivo Niitvägi, the head of the Town...
Design Competition
(See English below) Labora sünnipäevapeo postkaardikujunduse konkursi tingimused Võidukujunduse autor saab järgmise auhinna: 1 Labora paberivalmistamise töötuba. Töötoas võib osaleda kuni 16 inimest. Võitja peab auhinna saamiseks telefoni või e-maili teel leppima...
Seed Bombs!
It's sunny, it's spring, it's... still kind of grey-ish in Estonia. It's the perfect time for guerilla gardening! Seed bombs are an easy way to start and to get kids involved. Make some seed bombs together, get messy, and then go and bomb the city with flowers. Here...
Win 5 Seed Paper Cards of Your Choice!
Võida 5 Labora seemnekaarti oma valikul! Pane oma seemnepaber kasvama! 1. Istuta paber mullale. 2. Kasta seemnepaberit korralikult ja vaata, et see ära ei kuivaks. 3. Jälgi selle kasvamist! 4. Tee kasvama läinud seemnepaberist pilt ja jaga seda: Intsagram’is...
Moritz, His Internship and Animation
До свидания Таллинн, красивый город! With these few words of my very bad Russian, I would like to start writing about my internship here in Tallinn. They became more representative of my whole experience, than one might think. The more time I spent at the Ukrainian...
Books We Make
Our Labora workshops are made to keep traditional arts and crafts alive, and to develop them for contemporary needs. Working with our hands is what unites us – letterpress printing, papermaking, calligraphy, woodwork, bookbinding, design and illustrations. When these...
How a Christmas Card Is Made
Have you ever wondered how a letterpress print is made - from the first idea to the final product? Explore the creative process behind the making of our products - today our new Christmas greeting card! Letterpress suits calligraphy exceptionally well - that is why we...
Sending Seeds (and Other Things) Around the World
Sending our seed paper cards around the world - it sounds easy enough, right? It is, except some countries are very strict when it comes to deciding what is allowed to cross their borders. That is undoubtedly a great thing, you don't want a foreign species of flowers...
Farewell, Nikolas, Our First Intern!
Tallinna Paber decided to take in interns through the Erasmus+ programme - and our first experience was great! Our intern Nikolas Falas has volunteered to write a few words about his two-month experience here: When I first applied for an internship in Tallinna Paber,...
We are going to Helsinki Design Market!
Are you planning a trip to Helsinki on 3. - 4. September? Then stop by the Helsinki Design Market at the Cable Factory (Tallberginkatu 1). Tallinna Paber will be there in the Print Market section - with our seed cards, seed bombs and brand new wall calendars! Saturday...
Creative Process
Preparing Files for Letterpress
Are you ready to prepare your own design to print in our Labora Workshops? Printing with letterpress has its specifics, so have a look at our recommendations before you start. If you want to know how printing with letterpress works, read our printmaker Hannah’s...
Papermaking ABCs
Every craft creates its own language. While some words may be unique to the craft, common words may carry a unique meaning within the craft. What follows are one papermaker’s ABCs: A is for Abaca – a type of fibre native to the Philippines – also known as...
Labora’s Makers: Being a Chronicle of Nestor’s Artistic Journey
EA Johnson is in town, meeting with Labora’s makers. You can see what else he has been up to at flatfish.ee. Enjoy his interview with Nestor Ljutjuk. “Nestor! Open the floor!” – Нестор! Открой пол! And with these three magic words, I met...
Experimenting with photopolymer
Our CREAM project partners visited us at Labora to try out a selection of the various workshops we offer. One of the most open-ended workshops we lead is Experimenting with Photopolymer and the results from the CREAM visit provide a nice opportunity to share insights...
Labora’s Partners: Some Notes on Marian Habicht
EA Johnson is in town, meeting with Labora’s makers. You can see what else he has been up to at flatfish.ee. Enjoy his interview with Marian Habicht about how she brings medieval binding techniques to life. A blank page. An empty notebook....
Labora’s Partners: Sharing Impressions with Agnes Liiv
EA Johnson is in town, meeting with Labora’s makers. You can see what else he has been up to at flatfish.ee. Enjoy his interview with Agnes Liiv about her ceramics and her Kalamaja garden which inspires her. Agnes explains Estonia’s burdock and nettles:...
Labora’s Makers: Shaping Worlds from Words with Tatiana Iakovleva
EA Johnson is in town, meeting with Labora’s makers. You can see what else he has been up to at flatfish.ee.Enjoy his interview with Tatiana Iakovleva, Labora's calligrapher and the head of the Tallinn School of Calligraphy. Watching Tatiana’s hand move...
Labora’s Partners: Whistling While Daniel Rahuvarm Works
EA Johnson is in town, meeting with Labora’s makers. You can see what else he has been up to at flatfish.ee. Enjoy his interview with Daniel Rahuvarm. If you happen to spot a young man walking around Tallinn – or his home town of Haapsalu – wearing a...
Labora’s Partners: A Still Life with Vaikelu
EA Johnson is in town, meeting with Labora’s makers. You can see what else he has been up to at flatfish.ee. Enjoy his interview with Vaikelu's creators Mirjam Parve and Ragne Schults. Forget about drying the fragile flowers you’ve gathered by pressing...
Labora’s Makers: A Portrait of Hannah Harkes (Continued)
EA Johnson is in town, meeting with Labora’s makers. You can see what else he has been up to at flatfish.ee. Welcome to our new series and enjoy his first interview with Hannah Harkes. Read the first part of the interview with Hannah here. You...
Labora’s Makers: A Portrait of Hannah Harkes
EA Johnson is in town, meeting with Labora's makers. Welcome to our new series and enjoy his first interview with Hannah Harkes. Within Labora’s creative collective, every member plays a part to make up the whole. And yet Labora’s true strength is...
Printing Mushrooms
My first impression of Estonia was the huge amount of contrasts. Starting from the Tallinn airport, you pass the industrial park, a village of multi-storey buildings, old soviet buildings surrounded by a forest of skyscrapers, all the way to the charming little Old...
Peek Into Our Woodworking Workshop
Our woodworking workshop lies in the narrow part of Laboratooriumi street in Tallinn Old Town. Step inside the wooden door of house number 25; Andres Koidu will greet you with a quick glance and a shy hello. He is the master of the workshop and the maker of the many...
From the Printmaker’s Workshop: Photopolymer Processing
Hannah here, from the printmaking workshop. I've been given access to our blog for some technical writing, so get ready for a long, geeky ramble about all those beautiful little technical details which make printmakers start to talk with wide eyes, in fast, excited...