1 Taara Avenue (Auricu OÜ)

Arnold Matteus (EAM Fk 387)

Taara pst 1

• The residence of the city architect Arnold Matteus.

1 Taara Avenue and Arnold Matteus

The appearance and layout of the Tähtvere district was shaped mainly by Tartu’s city architect, Arnold Matteus (1897-1986), who held that post between 1926-1935 and 1941-1960. Many of the houses which were built in Tähtvere in the 1930s were designed by Matteus. Examples of buildings which he designed include 1 and 4 Hurda Street, and 3 Taara Avenue. They can be recognised thanks to their Functionalist style, which many people in Tartu have come to love and which have become rather iconic, especially in connection with Tähtvere. The fact that the district of Tähtvere is dominated by Matteus’ own peculiar style was intentional, as the man was granted permission to design one house for each completed street. These houses were supposed to serve as a benchmark for other architects who were also working in Tähtvere.

It is ironic, though, that the famous architect himself did not spend the last days of his life in his own classic functional house but in a Soviet-era prefab apartment building at 1 Taara Avenue, which was built in 1976 and which differs considerably from the surrounding older buildings of Tähtvere. 

The heritage which Matteus left to the district and the act of remembering this architect are both still important today for the people of Tartu. Activists have launched an initiative to create the Matteus Garden Square at the end of Taara Avenue, in the direction of Näituse Street, as a dignified memorial for this well-known architect who has played such an important part in the development of the Tähtvere district.

Watch the film, ‘Arnold Matteus. Arhitekti mälestusi’ (‘Arnold Matteus. Memoirs of the Architect’) by Ike Volkov, Andres Sööt, and Jaak Elling, available on YouTube.