Vive Tolli (also spelled Viive Tolli; née Vive Pajusoo; 28 July 1928 â 8 April 2020) was an Estonian printmaker and educator, known for intaglio printmaking (especially etching), as well as book illustration and ex-libris works. She was a long-time member of the Estonian artistsâ union, taught at the Estonian State Art Institute (now the Estonian Academy of Arts), and later held emeritus status there.
Tolli was born in Tallinn and completed secondary school there in 1947. She first studied ceramics at the Tallinn State Institute of Applied Arts, before switching to printmaking and graduating in 1953 from the Estonian State Art Institute (ERKI). Her diploma work was an etching series on fishing on Kihnu island, supervised by artist Alo Hoidre.
From 1953 to 1982 Tolli worked primarily as a freelance artist. She later taught at the Estonian State Art Institute, becoming a docent (associate professor) in 1987 and a professor in 1992, and later served as an emeritus professor of the academy.
She undertook additional professional training abroad, including in Yugoslavia (1969) and Canada (1987). From 1957 she was a member of the artistsâ union, and from 1972 an honorary member of the Finnish Kalevala Association.
TolliâÂÂs practice centred on original printmaking, while also encompassing book illustration, bookplates (ex-libris) and posters. In institutional summaries of her work, etching is repeatedly noted as her preferred medium, with later works also incorporating colour and spatial illusion within intaglio-based approaches.
According to the Estonian Academy of Arts, her best-known motifs include depictions of coastal life and nature, views of TallinnâÂÂs Old Town, and thematic cycles (including a series inspired by Estonian folk-calendar feast days), alongside later works with theatrical and metaphorical elements. A 2009 Sirp notice describing an Old Town-themed exhibition characterised her etchings as rich in nuance and associated her work with a classical position in Estonian printmaking, noting extensive exhibition activity in Estonia and abroad.
Tolli held numerous solo exhibitions and participated in group exhibitions internationally, including in Finland and Denmark, as recorded in Estonian art reference databases and museum collection portals.
In 2018 EstoniaâÂÂs public broadcaster ERR covered her 90th birthday exhibition at the National Library, reflecting sustained public and institutional attention to her long career. The Estonian Printmakersâ Association also announced related jubilee programming in 2018.
Tolli received major recognition in both the Soviet-era Estonian SSR system and in post-independence Estonia. She was named (1965) and (1978).
She received the Kristjan Raud Art Award in 1978 (listed among that yearâÂÂs recipients). In 1998 she won the main prize of the Eduard Wiiralt Art Award (Wiiralti preemia).
Institutional biographies also note that she received the (2001). In 2008 she received a lifetime-achievement honour from the Estonian National Culture Foundation.
In 1952 she married sculptor Lembit Tolli; their daughter Tuulikki Tolli became a scenographer.