Tartu in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network
Tartu has been an official UNESCO City of Literature since 2015. However, no Nobel Laureate or world-renowned writer lives here. What literature is there to find, then? The answer might be found in the city’s own texts, its inspiring places and people, in sensing the world in a Tartu kind of way. Here are some suggestions on how to explore the city’s literary side.
A map of the City of Literature can also prove helpful.
Move with literature
Coffee and literature
There have always been temples erected to literature, the most impressive of which in terms of both content and appearance is on Vanemuine Hill: the library of the University of Tartu; the first achievement of Soviet architecture in Tartu, which the Republic of Estonia recognized as a cultural monument.
In front of it is a powerful monument to the world-famous semiotician Yuri Lotman – a tubular portrait of metal, water and light. However, the place where Lotman and many other legendary professors and creative people have had coffee and cognac is the University Café, where you can still go today to order an espresso. Or head to Werner for creative work, where you can meet coffee and cake gourmets with blissful faces.
A peculiar meeting is also waiting for those going to the former printing house, the current Vilde and Vine café; an encounter with a bronze sculpture of Estonian writer Eduard Vilde and Irishman Oscar Wilde, a copy of which can be found in Galway, Ireland.
Meet the spirit of Tartu
Participate in literary life
Much of city’s creative oxygen is consumed in its hubs of literary life – for example, in the House of Literature (Vanemuise 19), where literary Tuesdays and alternative music evenings take place, as well as the Crazy Tartu interdisciplinary festival. Literary events for both young and old, as well as exciting book exhibitions, can be found in the Tartu City Library.
A lively atmosphere prevails in the regular Tartu Poetry Slam competitions in Vilde and Vine. However, during the annual Tartu International Literature Festival Prima Vista, many places all over the city are filled with literary life.
Gift literature
What would Tartu be without unique bookstores and antique shops? At the Widget Factoy (Aparaaditehas), you’ll find Fahrenheit 451°, a cozy book room that treasures old books, and Biblioteek, a charming independent bookstore offering a carefully curated selection of new and used books.
On the Town Hall Square you will find the cosy Krisostomus bookstore, which offers a good selection of high-quality scientific literature and the opportunity to order books published all over the world. For new and old, scientific and fictional literature alike, you must go to Utoopia bookstore, a sanctuary for book lovers, where you might just meet the author of a book you have recently read. However, the antique shops snugly located on the rise of Riia Street, are worth visiting with a bigger cloth bag; there you will find the bookstores Sõna and Antikvariaat.