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Riga's Art Nouveau Architecture
Art Nouveau (French for 'new art') is a style in art, architecture and design that
started in 1880s and peaked in popularity at the beginning of the 20th century.
This style spread out through many cities of Europe and even few cities in America.
In Riga, Latvian Romanticism movement made the city home to over 800 Art Nouveau
(German Jugendstil) buildings, the biggest and finest concentration of Art Nouveau
buildings in the world. Being a relatively small city one can find Art Nouveau on
virtually every street in the centre and Old Riga (Vecriga).
During the Art Nouveau period, Riga was a wealthy city, well positioned to receive
it. Riga was centre for transit trade, a city where factories put out airplanes,
train cars, bicycles and automobiles. It was a centre for porcelain production,
and it was home to some of the most distinguished scientists and educators of those
days.
Then a city of the Russian Empire, Riga saw architects from Germany, Austria and
Finland working with for clients from Germany, Russia and Latvia. Indeed, at the
turn of the 19th century, Riga was a place where architects fiercely vied with one
another in the grandeur of their designs. Among them Mikhail Eisenstein which buildings
are found along Elizabetes and Alberta iela.
The Style
Art Nouveau is considered a 'total' style, meaning that it encompasses a hierarchy
of scales in design - architecture; interior design; decorative arts including jewellery,
furniture, textiles, household silver and other utensils, and lighting; and the
range of visual arts.
Art Nouveau in architecture and interior advocated the use of highly stylized nature
as the source of inspiration and expanded the 'natural' repertoire to embrace seaweed,
grasses and insects. Correspondingly organic forms, curved lines - especially floral
or vegetal - and the like were used.
Dynamic, undulating, and flowing, with curved 'whiplash' lines of syncopated rhythm,
characterise much of Art Nouveau. Another feature is the use of hyperbolas and parabolas.
Conventional mouldings seem to spring to life and 'grow' into plant-derived forms.
Art Nouveau artists quickly used new materials, machined surfaces, and abstraction
in the service of pure design.
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Click on the images to see the full photo.
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Location: 25/29 Jauniela Street (Old Riga)
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Building on Alberta with Streinieku Iela (Riga Centre)
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Building on Elizabetes Iela (Riga Centre)
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Location: Jauniela Iela and Doma Laukums (Old Riga)
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1/3 Smilsu Street (Old Riga)
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1/3 Smilsu Street (Old Riga)
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Location: Intersection between Barona Iela and A. Caka Iela (Riga Centre) as far
I remember.
![Riga Centre Alberta Iela [Sers Jesaja Berlins]](http://www.in-riga.com/assets/images/thumbnail/Riga_Centre_Alberta_2a_Sers_Jesaja_Berlins.jpg)
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Location: Alberta Iela 2a (Riga Centre)
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Dragon's at the door of the building. Location: Antonijas Iela (Riga Centre)
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Location: Riga Centre Brivibas Iela 68 (Riga Centre)
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Location: Brivibas Iela intesection with Stabu Iela (Riga Centre)
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Location: Caka Iela 58 intersection with Bruninieku (Riga Centre)
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Location: Elizabetes Iela near Antonijas Iela (Riga Centre)
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School in Terbatas Iela 17 (Riga Centre)
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Cat House because the cats figures on top of the roof. (Old Riga)
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