“Nest 2” is the second installation in Noblessner to combine light and metal art. Merko installed the first “Nest” beside Kalaranna Street in 2024. The new work stands on Lennusadama Street, close to the sea, between Ellingu Park and Taru Nature House.
The bird’s nest, made of metal branches and measuring more than 2.5 metres across, contains illuminated eggs. It sits nearly 20 metres above the ground, on top of a former lighting mast. “Nest 2” welcomes Noblessner’s new neighbour, Taru Nature House, and evokes the feeling of finding a place to call home.
“For Merko, a quality home also includes the urban space around its buildings. To enrich the living environment and give artists opportunities to display their work, we have installed more than 20 individual artworks and sculpture groups in Tallinn. Placing a glowing nest on top of a metal mast does more than give an old industrial structure new purpose: it brings joy to the neighbourhood,” said Indrek Tarto, Head of Merko Kodud.
“Nest 2” was created by spatial experience studio Inimruum and lighting and product design studio un-like, who also designed the first nest. This time, the metal nest was woven by artist Heigo Jelle.
“Inspired by its seaside location, we gave the new nest a bolder form than the first. The material used for the branches draws on the angle iron of the mast’s structure. We reused the mould made for the first installation to produce the illuminated eggs. The first nest has three eggs; the new one has two,” said Kristel Linnutaja of Inimruum, the design lead for both nests.
In cooperation with BLRT, Merko has installed several other artworks in Noblessner: Edith Karlson’s giant dinosaur sculpture “Head vanad ajad” (“The Good Old Days”) and Heigo Jelle’s “Kaks kolivad suurde linna” (“Two Move to the Big City”) and “Maa-õhk tüüpi tüdruk” (“Earth-Air Type Girl”). On the marina quay stands “Lessneri vint” (“Lessner’s Propeller”), an artwork approximately 7.5 metres in diameter and weighing 33 tonnes. It symbolises more than a century of shipbuilding in Noblessner.
Recognised as the best urban development in the Baltic states, Noblessner is a harbour district open to people and the sea. Ten residential buildings have been completed so far. The Allveelaeva 2 apartment building will be completed by the end of the year. Plans ahead include creating Ellingu Park on the historic submarine factory site and building Estonia’s closest-to-the-sea residential buildings, which will extend across the promenade to the water’s edge.
Explore the artworks Merko has helped bring to Tallinn’s public spaces, along with suggested walking routes, merko.ee/art-walk/. Discover the homes in Noblessner at merko.ee/noblessner.
