Vaskjala Sirakas is turning 5 and Copper Leg Art Residency is turning 8 — this deserves a proper celebration ! ! ! Sirakas has already become a traditional end-of-summer mini-festival, where experimental electronic music performed live meets the artworks of the Copper Leg.
Vaskjala Sirakas 2025 weekend offers an exciting blend of experimental electronic music, visual arts, performances, workshops, and sauna experiences, both indoors and outdoors. From Saturday’s exclusive music & art explorations marathon to Sunday’s jam session, creative activities, and a special birthday tour. Everyone is warmly invited to join, hang out, and stay overnight if they wish!
10:00–11:30 Breakfast 11:30–13:30 Swimming or/and sauna 14:00–15:00 Copper Leg birthday tour with Niina-Anneli Kaarnamo @nakaarnamo & Maarja Tere @teremaarja 15:30– Estonian Electronic Music Association@elektroonilisemuusikaselts jam session Workshops: 15:30– Pinhole camera workshop with Ott Kattel @unxle 15:30– Doll-making workshop with Lea Blau @leablau_
Recommendation: Please register for the free Sunday workshops copperleg@rae.ee
The Vaskjala Reservoir, built in 1970 as part of Tallinn’s water system and connected to Lake Ülemiste by canal, has shaped both the local ecosystem and how people relate to the landscape. During the late June residency at Copper Leg, when the days are long and the meadows full, artist Junny, Chun Au Yeung follows this layered landscape shaped by glacial movements and water systems, exploring how direction might be found not through fixed plans, but through attention, presence, and quiet observation. ” In 2022, after completing my Master’s degree in Estonia, I moved directly to a city in the UK. The decision felt somewhat abrupt, and in many ways, unchosen. I remember spending a long time before my arrival navigating the area through Google Maps—surveying streets, buildings, and environments. In this state of “pre-arrival orientation,” I began forming mental images of a place I had never physically entered, generating a tension between imagined stability and geographic positioning.
This experience became the starting point of my practice. A map seems to promise direction, offering a pathway to a place called “home”—an endpoint where anxiety might find rest. Yet, once I began living in this so-called destination, I felt only a deep sense of dislocation and despair. It was as if I were holding a map that failed to lead me to any space where I could actually belong. The destination had never truly existed—only the illusion of it.
This exhibition traces what I now describe as “an ongoing rehearsal within a labyrinth.” It reflects the gap between the imagined clarity of a destination and the dissonance of actual living. When symbols and shaded zones on a map can no longer guide us to where we hoped to arrive, we are left circling inside abstract signs—hovering in a state of unresolved, drifting, uncertain being. I became, in this process, an uninhabited shell—something moved, but not filled.
During my two-month residency at Copper Leg, I return to several recurring questions: What is the fiction of direction? What does it mean for existence to drift? And how much of belonging is shaped by chance? Does the idea of a “destination” truly exist, or is it merely a projection formed by perception?
As a response, I will develop a personal psychological map—one that connects reflections on the natural environment with lived experience. Through a pre-planned walking route, visitors will be invited into nearby forests and fields. How does a plant choose where to root itself? Do petals carry a will of their own, drifting not only with the wind, but toward where they wish to land? What does “destination” or “dwelling” mean to them? This act of walking becomes a quiet form of inquiry, and the reflections it generates will ripple into the language of the exhibition space—forming a dialogue between interior and exterior, between memory and presence.
Inside the gallery, through the rearrangement of familiar things into misaligned, non-functional forms, I aim to give shape to a quiet form of resistance—a question posed through composition: does existence itself have direction? These disruptions are not acts of destruction, but gestures of disorientation—revealing a state in which direction remains provisional, and the “ideal place” never truly settles. At the same time, I also use a pinhole camera to photograph the surrounding natural landscape, drawing on its inherent characteristics—waiting, inversion, uncertainty, and spatial misalignment—to further extend this reflection on the fragility of presence and the impossibility of arrival.“
– Junny about his work
Chun’s practice explores the instability of belonging through the material poetics of everyday objects, found materials, installation, drawing, and photography.
After receiving a Master’s degree in Contemporary Art from the Estonian Academy of Arts in 2022, Chun relocated to the UK—a transition that sparked an ongoing reflection on displacement, direction, and the constructed nature of “home.” Their work asks whether belonging is a path that can be navigated, or a condition of continuous drift.
Through reconfigured furniture, dysfunctional assemblages, and fragile installations, CHUN constructs spatial-poetic situations where function collapses and orientation becomes uncertain. These material gestures embody a recurring philosophical tension: the longing for arrival, and the impossibility of ever fully arriving.
In recent work, the artist has expanded his exploration of the language of navigation—maps, symbols, and spatial cues—as metaphors for existential uncertainty. His current project, An Ongoing Rehearsal within the Labyrinth, unfolds as an ongoing meditation on the provisional nature of direction, questioning whether the “ideal place” is anything more than a construct of the imagination.
LUUK is a dance conference with a focus on embodied practices and artistic research. We hold that all artistic processes entail various types of knowledge and also produce new ways of engaging, making and knowing. The conference’s aim is to offer a dialogic platform for (dance) artists, movement practitioners, educators, researchers and culture workers to gather and share their artistic work in the realm of dance, embodied practices and body-based approaches.
The 1st edition of LUUK will take place on 13th-14th of June 2025 at Copper Leg Residency.
Ari Jaaksi is a Finnish creative with diverse pursuits. He holds a Ph.D. in Software Engineering and an MSc in Education and has held executive roles at Intel, Hewlett-Packard, and Nokia. Alongside his corporate career, he has served as a professor and as an investor and board member for several startups.
In recent years, Ari has embraced photography as a creative outlet. Working mainly with analog black-and-white film, he has earned international recognition, participated in global exhibitions, and held successful solo shows. For Ari, the creative process is just as important as the final image, giving each photograph purpose and intent.
Photo: Ott Kattel
Photographic expression is a process in which taking the photograph itself is only a small part. In my work, the planning that happens before shooting — and especially the printing that follows — are the stages where the actual photograph comes to life. While the act of pressing the shutter may take just a fraction of a second, the printing process always takes several hours, sometimes even days. Through numerous test prints, adjustments, and trial and error, the final photograph emerges — one that you can hold in your hand, give to a friend, or hang on your wall. For me, a photograph is always a tangible object.
The Copperleg residency offers a unique opportunity to focus on building photographs. The slow pace and remote setting allow for uninterrupted work, and having constant access to a darkroom helps me pace my process according to the needs of each image. This is an excellent place to retreat for a while and focus solely on photography.
/ /// ///
Ari Jaaksi on suomalainen eri aloista kiinostunut taiteilija, ohjelmistosuunnitteija, professori ja yritysjohtaja. Hän on ohjelmistotekniikan tohtorin sekä kasvatustieteen maisterin, ja hän on toiminut kansainvälisten yritysten, kuten Intelin, Hewlett-Packardin ja Nokian johtotehtävissä. Lisäksi Ari on toiminut professorina sekä sijoittajana ja hallituksen jäsenenä useissa startup-yrityksissä.
Viime vuosina Ari on löytänyt valokuvauksesta uuden luovan ilmaisukeinon. Hän työskentelee pääasiassa analogisella mustavalkofilmillä ja on saanut kansainvälistä tunnustusta, osallistunut näyttelyihin ympäri maailmaa sekä pitänyt menestyksekkäitä yksityisnäyttelyitä. Arille luomisprosessi on yhtä tärkeä kuin lopputulos, mikä tuo jokaiseen valokuvaan harkittua tarkoitusta ja merkitystä.
Valokuvailmaisu on prosessi, jossa valokuvan ottaminen on vain pieni osa. Omassa työssäni kuvaamista edeltävä suunnittelu ja ennen kaikkea sen jälkeen tapahtuva vedostus ovat ne vaiheet, jossa itse kuva syntyy. Kun varsinaiseen näppäykseen menee parhaimmillaan sekunnin murto-osa, niin vedostamisprosessiin menee aina useita tunteja, jopa päiviä. Monen koevedoksen, muokkauksen ja hapuilujen kautta syntyy lopullinen oikea valokuva jota voi pitää kädessään, antaa ystävälleen tai ripustaa seinälleen. Itselleni valokuva on aina kokreettinen esine.
Photo:Ott Kattel
Copperlegin residenssi tarjoaa ainutlaatuisen mahdollisuuden keskittyä valokuvan rakentamiseen. Hidas ja syrjäinen ympäristö mahdollistaa kekeytymättömän työrupeaman, ja jatkuvasti käytössäni oleva pimiö auttaa rytmittämään työtäni kunkin kuvan vaatimalla tavalla. Tämä on oivallinen paikka erakoitua hetkeksi ja keskittyä ainoastaan valokuviin.
On Saturday 22 March, 2pm-5pm PPP at Copper Leg Art Residency
Performance by Daniela Morganiça & Pinhole Photography workshop by Ari Jaaksi and Ott Kattel & Põletamine If the weather allows, we are planning to make a little bonfire to celebrate and welcome the Spring. And it did !
Daniela Morganiça is a multidisciplinary artist from Portugal. With a focus on performing arts, her work is about struggle and persistence, questioning always the limits of oneself physically, emotionally and socially. And, above all, about the love that dwells in these acts of rebellion. https://www.instagram.com/fabianne_dubois/
Ari Jaaksi is a Finnish creative with diverse pursuits. He embraces photography as a creative outlet, working mainly with analog black-and-white film. For Jaaksi, the creative process is just as important as the final image, giving each photograph purpose and intent. https://slowlight.art/
Ott Kattel is a Estonian visual artist drawn to natural phenomena, architecture, and their portrayal through photography and video art. He explores both modern digital tools and the tactile world of analog photography, where the process itself often sparks creativity.
Photos of the event by Ott Kattel THANK YOU FOR COMING ! ! !
Tear! (Fear) Photo Marlene Leppänen at Kanuti Gildi SAAL / Made in Estonia Marathon 2025
Daniela Morganiça, a multidisciplinary artist from Portugal, specializes in the performing arts. She has been creating her own works since 2005 and also collaborates on co-creations with both Portuguese and international artists. After a 10-year hiatus, Morganiça returned to the stage in 2022 and has since been actively exploring themes of struggle and persistence, In her work she is constantly questioning the physical, emotional, and social limits of the self. Morganiça´s art is intrinsically linked to advocacy for accessible spaces for all bodies, particularly focusing on the instrumentalization and objectification of non-normative bodies in the arts, social, and work environments. At its core, her work is about the love that arises through these acts of rebellion.
Tear! (Fear) Photo Marlene Leppänen at Kanuti Gildi SAAL / Made in Estonia Marathon 2025
CopperLeg & Made in Estonia Marathon 2025
Morganiça’s curiosity about CopperLeg emerged during her time working in Finland, where she observed the deep connections between Finnish and Estonian artists. With a new creation in progress, applying for a residency at CopperLeg felt like a natural step.
The opportunity to participate in the 18th Made in Estonia Marathon at Kanuti Gildi SAAL added another layer of dynamism to the residency, allowing Morganiça to test her physical and communication skills. The experience pushed her out of her comfort zone, providing the privilege of experimenting with new ideas while being accepted fully—not just as an artist but as a person with disabilities.
Morganiça’s performance Tear! (Fear)at the Made in Estonia Marathon 2025 was a raw display, a product of a shared vulnerability and profound exploration of fear. Though the performance is still a work-in-progress, she leaves with far more material to work with than she initially imagined and a deeper understanding of herself as an individual.
Daniela Morganiçaabout Tear! (Fear):
” This performance is the second of an autobiographical series. Having a journal (started in 2007) as reference and the contrast of two kinds of daily life (and memory of two bodies) this one reflects our own fears of change, our need to belong to somewhere or someone and the inevitable conclusion that our best can easily not to be the best as we hope. When the performance “Auguri! (Agouro)” (the first of the series) was related to the acceptance of the imperfect, Tear! (Fear) talks about the struggle and frustration that comes as part of the acceptence. The creation of a choreographic piece was an urge – movements are universal. With the narrative in mind – a timeline interrupted by something unexpected (a stroke, in this specific case) and all the confusion, inner upheaval, hope and fear – a very specific soundscape was needed to illustrate it, which was created in residency, as well as the choreography. This 8 minutes piece was brought to stage at Kanuti Gildi SAAL on the 8th March. As this work is still in progress, new materials were token (video recording of the landscape, audio recording of John Grzinich installation piece “Powerless Flight”) which I’m currently working in. This new materials sparked reflections on wonder, longing and grief, which I feel that can be a new layer on this work. “
Tear! (Fear) Photo Marlene Leppänen at Kanuti Gildi SAAL / Made in Estonia Marathon 2025
Exhibition opening at Copper Leg Art Residency On Thursday 6th March 2025 5pm-8pm
Here at Copper Leg, we continue to wonder with our artists. Abscission, which originates from the Latin abscissio, meaning “to cut off,” represents shedding the old to make space for new growth. What can we make room for in the process of cutting off? We invite you to enter a space of discovery, where ideas of growth, transformation, and renewal unfold naturally.
” By emphasizing the manual function of hand-sewing cut pieces of my clothes, my project is a subjective response that asks the question, “How do you photosynthesize?” The sculpture installation Abscission, and the non-binary short story How Do You Photosynthesize? explores plant biology and examines our human experience by navigating our connection to the environment through the developmental perspective of plants. The process of photosynthesis is one way to integrate psychology and botany to determine more about plants. The human psyche goes through growth processes that lead to healing, that we can also see in the plant world. We can learn how we treat relationships as transforming, in order to more thoroughly understand stages of decay and renewal. It promotes how the methodology in breaking down materials has emotional connotations beyond the growth, healing and separation that affects the significance of both human and plant cycles. “ -Sarah Noonan about their work.
Sarah Noonan (She/They, b.1997) is from Prince Edward Island, Canada and is a multidisciplinary artist based in Tallinn, Estonia. The innocent appearance and unrefined hand-sewing of their own clothes as material, often collides with their sensitive voice that raises haunting perspectives on what is sentimental and unstable. Through sculpture installation they explore psychological and emotional states that are poetic, oneiric, and non-gender specific. They consider our world today by investigating with an idiosyncratic viewpoint, what connects co-existing worlds.
Sarah Noonan received a Masters degree in Contemporary Art from the Estonian Academy of Arts (2024) and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Mount Allison University (2019).
https://www.instagram.com/insidethesnox
Poster/header art: Sarah Noonan
///// / /
Neljapäeval, 6. märtsil 2025 17-20 Sarah Noonani ABSCISSION
Jätkame Vaskjala Loomeresidetuuris kunstnikega imetlemist. Abscission, mis on pärit ladinakeelsest sõnast abscissio, mis tähendab “ära lõikama”, esindab vana mahavalamist, et teha ruumi uuele kasvu. Mida saame lõikamise protsessis vabastada? Kutsume teid astuma avastuse ruumi, kus kasvu, transformatsiooni ja uuenduse ideed avanevad loomulikult.
” Minu projekt on subjektiivne vastus küsimusele „Kuidas sa fotosünteesid?”, rõhutades käsitsi õmmeldud kangatükkide lõikamise ja ühendamise füüsilist protsessi. Skulptuuriinstallatsioon Abstsissioon ning lühijutt Kuidas sa fotosünteesid? uurivad taimede bioloogiat ning inimkogemust, luues seoseid meie keskkonna ja taimede arenguprotsesside vahel. Fotosünteesi protsess pakub võimalust ühendada psühholoogia ja botaanika, et paremini mõista nii taimi kui ka inimesi. Inimese psüühika läbib kasvuprotsesse, mis viivad tervenemiseni – sarnaselt taimedele. See uurib, kuidas me mõtestame suhteid läbi muutumise ning kuidas lagunemise ja uuestisünni etapid mõjutavad nii inimese kui ka taime elutsüklite tähendust.” -Sarah enda tööst
Open Doors Day at Copper Leg Residency On Saturday 15th February 2025 2pm-5pm Art Presentation by Kim Cardoso
Photo Ott Kattel / Graphic design Janno Bergmann
On 29th January, people around the world gathered to celebrate Lunar New Year, a time to honor ancestors, reflect on the past, and embrace new beginnings. The celebration emphasizes family, heritage, and continuity through symbols of prosperity, such as red envelopes and special foods. We at Copper Leg are celebrating together with our artist, Kim Cardoso. It’s a time to reconnect with one’s roots and invite good fortune for the year ahead.
Kim Cardoso is a visual artist based in Oakland, California. Working primarily with wax and pigment, her practice explores the intersections between humanity and nature, driven by a curiosity about the passage of time. She is process-oriented and enjoys the physicality of her materials, drawing on her formal training as a metalsmith and decades of experience as a midwife.
Kim came to Copper Leg to explore her Estonian heritage, reflecting on collected memories, lost time, and connecting with the landscape her grandmother loved and left behind. This is her first international residency.
Avatud uste päev Vaskjala Loomeresidentuuris Laupäeval, 15. veebruaril 2025 14:00-17:00 Kim Cardoso loomigu esitlus
29. jaanuaril kogunesid inimesed üle kogu maailma tähistama Kuu uut aastat, aega esivanemate austamiseks, mineviku üle järele mõtlemiseks ja uute alguste vastuvõtmiseks. Püha rõhutab perekonna, pärandi ja järjepidevuse tähtsust läbi heaolu sümbolite, nagu punased ümbrikud ja erilised toidud. Me Vaskjala Loomeresidentuuris tähistame koos oma kunstnik Kim Cardosoga. See on aeg, et uuesti ühenduda oma juurtega ja kutsuda ligi head õnne järgmiseks aastaks.
Kim Cardoso on kunstnik, kes elab Oaklandis, Californias. Peamiselt vaha ja pigmendiga töötades uurib ta inimkonna ja looduse ristumiskohti, olles ajaga seotud uudishimu ajendatud. Ta on protsessipõhine ja naudib oma materjalide füüsilisust, tuginedes oma ametikoolitusele metallikunstnikuna ja aastakümnete pikkusele töökogemusele ämmaemandana. Kim tuli Vaskjala Loomeresidentuuri, et uurida oma Eesti pärandit, mõeldes kogutud mälestustele, kadunud ajale ja ühendusesse maastikuga, mida tema vanaema armastas ja jättis maha. See on tema esimene rahvusvaheline residentuur.
On Saturday 25th January 2025 Open Doors Day at Copper Leg Art Residency Art Presentation by Jitka Králová & Felipe Franco
Photo Ott Kattel / Graphic design Janno Bergmann
Copper Leg Art Residency is located on the North Estonian Klint, a geological formation characterized by limestone bedrock formed during the Ordovician period, approximately 450 million years ago. The surrounding landscape is shaped by flat plains and fertile soils, fostering the agrarian environment around the residency. This January, the area has been blanketed in snow, adding a serene and tranquil quality to the rural scenery.
Our January artists, Jitka Králová and Felipe Franco, have been embracing and exploring this unique landscape. Through collecting and connecting with their surroundings, they have delved into the profound relationship between material, nature, and one another.
Jitka Králová, from the Czech Republic, works at the intersection of media such as painting, ceramics, and drawing in public spaces. She explores the motivations behind urban and rural environments, raising questions about the forms of everyday expression.
Felipe Franco, from Colombia, engages with video and spatial actions to build narratives that, through architecture and domestic expressions, question everyday life.
Laupäeval, 25. jaanuaril 2025 Avatud uste päev Vaskjala Loomeresidentuuris Loomingu esitlus: Jitka Králová & Felipe Franco
Vaskjala Loomeresidentuur asub Põhja-Eesti klindil, geoloogilisel moodustisel, mida iseloomustab ordoviitsiumi ajastul, umbes 450 miljonit aastat tagasi, tekkinud lubjakivist aluspõhi. Ümbritsev maastik koosneb tasastest tasandikest ja viljakatest muldadest, kujundades residentuuri ümbruse põllumajanduslikku keskkonda. Selle jaanuari jooksul on piirkond olnud lumega kaetud, lisades maapiirkonnale rahulikku ja vaikset ilu. Meie jaanuarikuu kunstnikud, Jitka Králová ja Felipe Franco, on võtnud omaks ja uurinud seda ainulaadset maastikku. Kogudes ja luues ühendust oma ümbrusega, on nad süvenenud sügavamatesse seostesse materjali, looduse ja teineteise vahel.
Jitka Králová, Tšehhi Vabariigist, töötab meediumite lõimumisega, nagu maalikunst, keraamika ja joonistamine avalikes ruumides. Ta uurib linnakeskkondade ja maapiirkondade motivatsioone, tõstes esile küsimusi igapäevaelu väljendusvormide kohta.
Felipe Franco, Kolumbiast, tegeleb videomeedia ja ruumiliste tegevustega, luues narratiive, mis läbi arhitektuuri ja koduste väljendite küsitlevad igapäevaelu.
Mohar Kalra stayed, lived and made his art at the Copper Leg Art Residency from January 6 to January 19, 2025.
Kalra’s project experimented with the sounds frozen water bodies make when struck with various materials, aiming to inform a performance on ice across Europe, reflecting on what we lose as climates change. During his stay at Copper Leg Art Residency, Kalra explored ice in various environments, experimenting with the textures and sounds it produces to uncover its compositional potential.
” Specifically, I experimented on canals, bogs and lakes, some of which made better sounds than others (the lake was best, but it also depended significantly on how the ice had formed and if it had a layer of snow saturating it). I also performed other material experiments on snow and ice, attempting to see what sound and impact would arise when water in a glass vessel freezes and cracks the glass, for example. I also experimented with the sounds and theatrical qualities of snow melting on a sauna heater. Snow and ice are inherently transient materials and I will use this material research to frame the performance I ultimately produce. “
