Photo exhibiton "Half An Hour with an Author. III."

alongside traditional portraits, there were writers presenting their papers at conferences and anniversaries, conversing in groups and meetings. We set as our goal to record writers, literary scholars, poets and translators in their unique environments, as chosen by the writers themselves, in a places they felt most comfortable and at home, where they concentrated on their ideas, were creative and inspired. Understandably, a person is most natural, open and relaxed in his familiar surroundings, in his daily environment, in an element of his own choosing.

What is the environment of a writer? It is the total complex of all the things, relationships and conditions surrounding him, everything he depends on to a lesser or greater extent. This is the place with the things he needs or cherishes, be it a table, a chair, books, or a tree outside. This is his family and relatives, his community and neighbours, his colleagues and comrades, and even his pets. It's the feeling established by everything in the surroundings: the silence of a country cottage, the traffic noise of a city apartment, the breeze in the forest, the murmur of the sea, the buzz of a coffee shop, the milieu of the everyday. All these factors, caught characteristically in the photographs, had their share in the project.

Our first circular sent to writers asking for permission to photograph them received only one or two responses. A personalized approach turned out to be much more fruitful. We still respected the principle: we enter no home by force. There were some who welcomed our proposal, there were others who had doubts, and there were those who refused. The proposed sites for taking photographs were varied: apartments, houses, farms, cottages, parks, seashores, gardens, libraries, cafés, and offices of writers having other jobs. In addition to Tallinn and Tartu, we drove to different counties all over Estonia, and crossed the sea to Hiiu- and Saaremaa, and to the islands of Abruka and Kihnu. We were happy to travel to Riga and even Stockholm – while transporting Estonian exile archives to the Literary Museum.
Within a twelve year span, photographer Alar Madisson took photographs of more than 250 writers. Within that time, two travelling exhibitions with the title “Half an Hour with a Writer I-II” were created and shown in the Literary Museum, all over Estonia and in Finland. In 2009, a selection of photographs (Picture Book of Writers) was published and sent to all Estonian school libraries.

As the coordinators of the project (until 2007 Piret Noorhani, since 2008 Vilve Asmer), we have accompanied the photographer as public relations agents or navigators, since looking for the meeting places led to adventures on stray village roads and in foreign cities. Our heartfelt thanks go to Alar Madisson who was not only the creative photographer of our team but also its car driver. The trips with him were always safe and cheerful even though we sometimes lost our way or met angry village dogs. Although at times he had to go on his trips alone, we could usually find him a companion to ease his tasks. So, our thanks go also to Vallo Kepp, Merike Kiipus, Janika Kronberg, Kristi Metste, and Leili Punga.
All of us “calling on writers” remember fondly the beautiful places and friendly encounters. Even though we planned for a visit of half an hour or an hour, it often lasted longer – the world of a writer begged for a longer stay and conversations with a cup of coffee were not easy to break. We are deeply grateful to all those who received us so warmly, sharing with us their invaluable time.

Piret Noorhani
Vilve Asmer