Riga's Gilded Past: How Art Nouveau Became the Soul of Latvia's Capital

Explore Riga's remarkable "Golden Age" at the turn of the 20th century, when immense wealth from railway lines, shipyards, and factories transformed it into one of the Russian Empire’s richest cities. This prosperity fueled an unprecedented building boom, with 300–500 new structures rising annually between 1910–1913, predominantly in the then-fashionable Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) style. Discover how local tycoons and affluent merchants invested heavily in grand apartment blocks and mansions, leading to Riga becoming the city with the highest concentration of pure Art Nouveau architecture anywhere in the world, with roughly one third of central Riga's buildings showcasing this flamboyant European style. We'll delve into the contributions of local architects like Konstantīns Pēkšēns, Eižens Laube, and Mikhail Eisenstein, who expressed national identity through diverse Art Nouveau styles, ranging from ornate eclectic facades to National Romantic and neo-classical variations. Hear the surprising story of how a lack of funds during the Soviet occupation inadvertently protected many of these magnificent buildings, allowing Riga's unparalleled collection of over 600 surviving Art Nouveau structures to be restored and recognized today as a UNESCO World Heritage site and a vibrant "living museum" of its pre-Soviet era.

Full Article: Riga’s Golden Age: The Art Nouveau Capital of the Baltic - The Northern Voices