Calendar

The Latvian Centre for Contemporary Art in cooperation with the Baltic Art Center will open an exhibition: "Portable Landscapes. Gotland. A Shelter with a View of Home" at the Körsbärsgården Konsthall in Gotland.

Youth guards and cadets from all three Baltic countries and the UK will participate in this international youth guard camp.

Each of the historical regions of Latvia - Kurzeme, Latgale, Vidzeme, Zemgale, and greater Riga - will be represented by ten 'jewels'. In each of these five locations displays portraying the ten most significant landscapes for each region will be on display.

On the occasion of Latvia's State Centenary, the Riga City Festival will celebrate the cultural history and creative heritage of the city.

700 ships, planes, tanks, and dioramas of war scenes with an emphasis on the theme of sea battles - all of them together will be presented at the War Museum! Say it is not possible? This is possible, but only in smaller scale. 17th-19th In August, we invite everyone to the premises of the War Museum.

PLATU 25 SPORT YACHT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2018 will be held in Riga 18.-25. August. This is one of the most ambitious projects in Sport Sailing, one design class in Latvia for last 30 years, which is Latvia`s Centenary worthy event.

BURNING CONSCIENCE will be permanent exhibition on the resistance of the people of the former Cēsis apriņķis (District) against the Soviet and Nazi occupations 1940 – 1957. The Exbition will be open to the public from 23 August 2018.

On the occasion of the Latvian and Estonian centenaries, the Estonians and the Latvians reaffirm their musical talents, performing a joint concert at the prestigious Baltic Sea Festival in Stockholm.

This performance is about human destiny and the ancient Balts, whose daily activities and significant life events - births, christenings, marriages - are interwoven with the battle for survival, the anticipation and reality of war.

Civic initiative honouring Latvia's centenarians.

On Ancient Bonfire Night, everyone living in the countries surrounding the Baltic Sea is invited to light bonfires along the seashore to symbolise our commitment and care for the Baltic Sea.

In honour of the centenaries of the two neighbouring countries Latvia and Estonia, two notable professional a cappella vocal groups are joining forces in a single concert.

Eric Ericson is a choral music legend in Sweden and in the world, who greatly influenced the development of this genre. The concert programme includes masterpieces of choral music that are sure to shine when performed by this unique collaboration of outstanding choirs.

A play for children and their parents about a boy who has been given a wondrous opportunity to travel through time. On his journey he meets his parents and grandparents at the age he is now. The boy faces his past and his ancestors in order to find the way back to himself and to the essence of who he his.

On 31 August, 2018 a concert "Mirdzi Stirniene Latvijas zvaigznājā" devoted to the centenary of Latvian state and 125 anniversary of Bishop Boļeslavs Sloskāns will take place in Stirniene with the State Academic choir Latvija (conductor Māris Sirmais).

The Archives of Latvian Folklore in cooperation with Office Latvia 100 and Radio Latvia opened a long lasting crowd-sourcing event for folklore manuscript transcription, called "Simtgades burtnieki" (Wizards of Centenary).

While waiting for Latvia's centenary celebration on 18 November 2018, we are happy to present the collection of 100 natural wonder of Latvia – through our uniq travel stories, little bit of historical research and photography.

The National Encyclopaedia is a universal-knowledge, popular-science resource in the Latvian language being compiled on the basis of academic principles.

The campaign "A Special Book for a Special Bookshelf" is an opportunity for everyone to donate a book – of special importance to themselves – to the National Library of Latvia, also writing a message or personal story relating to the book on its title page.

To learn about Latvia, take a trip along the seven paths to the idea of Latvian statehood - the Livs Road, Jacob's path, Freedom Road, the Baltic Way, the Path of the Daugava, the Path of Light, and Māra's Path. These are tourist routes filled with fascinating places, rich farmsteads, and beautiful landscapes.

As a part of the initiative "LV100 Great Trees" (LV100 Dižošanās) everyone is invited to go outside and help find the Great Trees that have yet to be discovered, and, with the help of a special test, to find out which Great Tree best suits your personality.

The programme Latvian Films for Latvian Centenary features 16 long films including six feature films, two animated films and eight documentaries. This initiative is honouring the centenary of Latvia.

The Latvian Lap of Honour is a program of events to help us discover the different regions of Latvia through their cultural heritage, traditions, historical and contemporary personalities, nature, and achievements.

Young playwright Andris Ūdris' professional debut - his play "I Promise" won third place in the Latvian National Theatre's Centenary competition.

The film tells the story of four girls who spend their summer holidays in the countryside. The year is 1989 and the TV news is reporting a state of emergency in Latvia. The girls, who have been left with no adult supervision, prepare for war.

This performance brings to life several of Latvian author and playwright Rūdolfs Blaumanis' lesser-known works - Spījēnos (In Spījēni), Romeo un Jūlija (Romeo and Juliet), Nauda zeķēs (Saving Money), Laimes klēpī (In the Lap of Fortune), Īsta līgaviņa (The Real Bride), and others.

A production dedicated to Russian-American actor director, author, and theatre practitioner Mikhail Chekhov, after whom the Riga Russian theatre was named. Although archival materials were used in the creation of the show, the authors sought to create a balance between history and legend, facts and fantasy.

The Business Information Centre “Magnetic Latvia” at Riga International Airport has been designed to serve as a stopover for foreign and local guests, be it a businessmen or a diplomat, where one can receive first-hand information from the staff of the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia about business opportunities and top tourist attractions

A film about life in Latvia through the eyes of five first graders is the beginning of a project that will continue to evaluate social and political processes in Latvia from their perspective throughout the years.

A poignant, life-affirming, and funny story for the whole family about seven-year-old Bille's adventures in Latva during the 1930s. The story is based on Latvian author, the Nobel Prize candidate, Vizma Belševica's autobiographical novel of the same name.

Project inspired by very popular social network account “Humans of New York” tells about Humans of Avotu Street based in Riga, Latvia.

A romantic drama about dreams of realising oneself, based on Latvian author Rudolfs Blaumanis' play "Skroderdienas silmačos" (A Wedding in Silmači).

A story about a unique phenomenon in the history of cinema - Baltic school of poetic documentary and its creators - filmmakers from Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia who broke the dogmatic poster-like propaganda documentary tradition in Soviet Union in the 1960s by creating films that were totally different: humane, meaningful, and poetic.

At the end of the Second World War, when the German army retreated from Latvia, it also took along 700 boxes of materials from Latvian museums. If not for a young woman named Mērija Grīnberga, the exhibition halls of many museums in Latvia would be empty today.

The exhibition Latvia’s Century is a joint contribution of Latvian museums to reveal 100 years of Latvia and to provide an opportunity to see excellent historical objects stored at the museums in all regions of Latvia – Kurzeme, Sēlija, Vidzeme, Zemgale and Riga.

More than 60 streets, boulevards, and squares in Latvia have been given the name Freedom. Two events will take place in 9 Latvian cities. The main message of the events is "From freedom to freedom". Events will give insight and appreciation for Latvia and what has happened in its past 100 years.

As part of a tourist promotion campaign the inhabitants of Latvia will be invited to travel around Latvia and to become acquainted with the periods of history important to Latvia through seven different journeys of statehood.

Latvian organists are marking the year of Latvia's 100th birthday by inviting listeners to eleven concerts in Riga and regions of Latvia.

DZIEDAM VISI VIENU DZIESMU is a studio recording by the Tērvetes Trubadūri and represents our gift to Latvia on her centenary. It includes a variety of Latvian songs expressing our belonging to the country of our ancestors.

These festivals promote the civic participation among young people and initiatives for creating a supportive environment, learning from best practice examples, and facilitating cooperation between educational institutions, municipalities, and local communities.

A popular science documentary film – a historical reconstruction with dramatic elements tells about the 13th-century Baltic peoples who later formed the Latvian nation.

London Jazz Festival in cooperation with Latvian Concert Agency - Rothko in Jazz and Latvian Radio Bigband, presenting programme Mare Balticum, Kristine Prauliņa (Latvia) un James Morrison (Australia).

Latvia International Ceramics Biennale - the most significant event in the field of contemporary ceramics in Baltic region. 100 pieces created by artists from around the world, including outstanding Latvian ceramic artists, will be on display for the Martisnons Award Competition to be evaluated by international jury.

The series of articles “What Latvian museums remember” published in the online magazine “Satori” will be an educational and enjoyable literary cycle of publications on six Latvian memorial museums, compiled by cultural researcher and publisher Ieva Viese-Vigula and poet Arvis Viguls.

The theme of this year's triennial is IDENTITY - historical, social, artistic, personal. It is diverse in a philosophical sense therefore artists are expected to discuss it from all points of view. It might have wide interpretations and can be viewed from different aspects.

This unique exhibition, taking place parallel to the 6th Riga International Textile and Fiber Art Triennial, will display tapestries from the designs of famous artists Henri Matisse and Joan Miro, legendary French tapestry maker Jean Lurcat, and others.

The exhibition provides an introduction to the Finnish Jaegers, a military unit founded during World War I.

This exhibition features a selection of works by contemporary artists from Eastern Europe of the Balkans. It is the final event of an international cooperation project. Michal Novotny, director at the FUTURA Center for Contemporary Art in Prague, is the curator of the exhibition.

The exhibit celebrates diaspora Latvian diversity, accomplishments and multi-faceted connections to Latvia. It forms a symbolic connection between Latvians throughout the world, showing migration as part of the Latvian story and the complicated formation and evolution of ethnic and national identity.

For the first time, the Baltic Triennial will take place in the three Baltic countries. Opening at the CAC in Vilnius, Lithuania in May 2018, June 2018 at Tallinn Art Hall, Estonia, and September 2018 at Kim? Riga, Latvia. The three distinct exhibitions act as different chapters to form the Triennial.

5D cinema "Look at Riga" offers a fantastic flight over Rtour around the urban environment, where the city’s historical charm together with the zealous rhythm of modern metropolis is caught, meanwhile viewing its most significant historical, art and architectural objects from another point of view.

From 7 July until 30 September 2018 Journey to Nowhere, a major exhibition of works by Imants Tillers, will be on view at the Latvian National Museum of Art in the Great Exhibition Hall of the main building (in Riga, at Jaņa Rozentāla laukums 1)

This website is a guide for exploring the 100-year history of Latvia. Here you will find information on the most significant tourist attractions, museums and memorial sites in Riga where you will be able to learn important facts about Latvia’s history, from the foundation of the Latvian state to nowadays.

The goal of the Mana Jūra initiative is to highlight the importance of the Baltic sea and the Latvian sea coast and for the people of Latvia state by presenting Latvia with a symbolic gift - a clean coastline.

These lectures have been organised to inform the community about the development of medicine, broad opportunities, problems, and personalities not only during the early years of the formation of the Latvian state, but also by following these processes through various periods.

The exhibit celebrates diaspora Latvian diversity, accomplishments and multi-faceted connections to Latvia. It forms a symbolic connection between Latvians throughout the world, showing migration as part of the Latvian story and the complicated formation and evolution of ethnic and national identity.

Sculptor Gļebs Panteļejevs has created an interactive sculptural composition dedicated to the outstanding coach of the 1935 Dream Team Valdemārs Baumanis, and the Basketball Basket of Glory, which symbolises the greatest achievements of Latvian basketball teams, their coaches, and individual players.

Artist Voldemārs Johansons is participating in the Bozar Electronic Arts Festival with his work Quantasonic: data modulation and 2 other works. Curator - Christophe De Jaeger (Brussels).

In honour of Latvia’s Centenary on November 18, the Latvian Institute is inviting the diaspora schools to prepare and send special greeting cards in the form of Latvian traditional mittens for the seniors who live in social care centres in Latvia.

Brand new premiere featuring a selection of Latvian and British dancers, actors & musicians.

300 members of the European Law Institute and leading academics, judges, and practising lawyers will assemble in Riga to symbolise the development of the Latvian legal system and Latvia's belonging to Europe.

The Festival's tenth anniversary is being planned as an ambitious contemporary art exhibition, performance, and discursive event in two acts - September 2018 and May 2019. The idea for Survival Kit 10 is based on an exploration of the concept outland. It will interrogate the traditional geopolitical and cultural divisions 'centre and periphery'.

School children from all around Latvia are invited to participate in the opening of the Latvian School Bag, celebrate the beginning of a new school year and kick-off the cultural programme. Through the day, pupils will be able to learn about the institutions and organisations involved in the Latvian School Bag project and learn about their capital city.

The significance of Kurts Fridrihsons reaches beyond the importance of his art because during the Soviet period there were not many personalities refusing to comply with the regime while at the same time being outstanding artists. He was a model and inspiration for many people whose spiritual world refused to accept the existing system.

The event will be designed as a story of the most significant contemporary agricultural areas, products, services and education for rural and urban interaction in order to demonstrate that in Latvia we are proud about our land and traditions that are still appreciated today.

This exhibition reflects the work of the Latvian Red Cross over the course of one hundred years from 1918 to the present day.

This performance is dedicated to a vital period in the formation of the Latvian state - the historical events of 1919 on the steamship Saratov, where the Latvian Provisional National Council took refuge for six long months.

White Night is a modern urban culture forum – one night a year locals and tourists are invited to enjoy a vigil creativity aimed to change their perception of the environment and cultural life. The Forum's international programme will highlight the work of Baltic artists in honour of the Estonian, Latvian, and Lithuanian centenaries.

Programme: Pēteris Vasks, Francis Poulenc, Anaberg Conductor: Sigvards Kļava

FEE! International is the world's leading organisation for environmental education. Latvia has been one of the most active countries in the region ever since, realising all five FEE International programmes. For this reason, the FEE International General Assembly will take place in Latvia in 2018.

A multimedia 3D performance has been created on the occasion of Latvia's first president Jānis Čakste's birthday. The performance will honour first four presidents of the Republic of Latvia - Jānis Čakste, Gustavs Zemgals, Alberts Kviesis, and Kārlis Ulmanis.

More than one thousand participants - members of organisations representing the various minority populations living in Latvia and their friends - gather at the Cultural Festival of Nationalities in Latvia in order to promote and develop their traditional cultures.

On September 15, 2018, World Cleanup Day, people in 150 countries will stand up against the global trash problem and clean up waste, making it the biggest positive civic action the world has seen.

This exhibition features a selection of works by contemporary artists from Eastern Europe of the Balkans. It is the final event of an international cooperation project. Michal Novotny, director at the FUTURA Center for Contemporary Art in Prague, is the curator of the exhibition.

For the first time, the Baltic Triennial will take place in the three Baltic countries. Opening at the CAC in Vilnius, Lithuania in May 2018, June 2018 at Tallinn Art Hall, Estonia, and September 2018 at Kim? Riga, Latvia. The three distinct exhibitions act as different chapters to form the Triennial.

Audiences are in for a rare treat as “The Seasons” visits London after its premiere at the Latvian National Opera. The evening promises to be an immersive experience with extraordinary acoustics for this live music concert.

Audiences are in for a rare treat as “The Seasons” visits London after its premiere at the Latvian National Opera. The evening promises to be an immersive experience with extraordinary acoustics for this live music concert.

The year is 1938. The poor artist Juris Upenājs arrives in Riga from the countryside, while at the same time the refined Eižens Žibeika returns from his painting session in Paris in the hope of receiving a considerable inheritance from his uncle.

Pandit Dr Lakshminarayana Subramaniam, 'The God of Indian Violin', and the Lipāja Symphony Orchestra have performed together more than once. During the orchestra's concert tour of India with Dr Subramaniam, thousands upon thousands of Indians will have the opportunity to learn the name Latvia.

One of Europe's most popular solo organists Iveta Apkalna performs with Konzerthausorchester Berlin and Slovak conductor Juraj Valčuha.

The Pauls Stradiņš Museum of History of Medicine will unveil a new installation honouring the doctors and medical professionals who have invested so much in the development of Latvian medicine and caring for Latvian society. New stars will continue to be added until the avenue of 100 stars is complete.

In 2014, Europe celebrated 25 years since the fall of Berlin Wall and the Iron Curtain. To record this event, the project "Peace Bread" was created showing contribution of long-term agricultural practice in peace-building and to the human well-being.

On October 2018, the Occupation Museum Association of Latvia and the City of Zedelgem in Belgium will erect a Monument to Freedom dedicated to Latvian soldiers who were POWs in Zedelgem, 1945/46, but who did not lose faith in the freedom of Latvia.

The three Baltic nations are celebrating their Centenaries with a broad and previously non-existent exchange programme between the state National Opera and Ballet companies.

One of the most important events of the season - the Latvian National Opera and Ballet will be visiting the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre.

The Latvian National Symphony Orchestra opens the new season with a performance of a new piece from outstanding Latvian composer Pēteris Vasks', commissioned by the orchestra with the support of the Latvian Centenary New Composition Programme.

Sinfonietta Rīga opens the Festival with its performance contemporary Estonian classic and the works of young composers under the direction of Estonian conductor Erki Pehk.

The LNSO concert tour of Europe culminates on 23 October with a performance at the Philharmonie de Paris, one of the citadels of European Classical Music.

In October of this year one of the world’s best symphonic orchestras will play in Liepaja Concert Hall – Leipzig Gewandhaus orchestra, which has a rich legacy with the new music director, distinguished conductor, winner of several Grammy awards Andris Nelsons as its Gewandhauskapellmeister.

The final concert (a cinema concert) in the cycle "The Ring of Latvia".

When Dad takes his seven-year-old son Jēkabs from a spacious flat in the Quiet Center of Riga to the city’s squalid Moscow District to spend his summer there, the inquisitive boy discovers a previously unknown world. He meets his uncle, the former seaman Ērglis, and his niece, the self-confident know-it-all Mimmi.

The 2018 New York Baltic Film Festival showcases the newest films from the Baltic States - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania - three Northern European countries in 2018 that are celebrating their centenaries since becoming independent nations in 1918.

The final concert (a cinema concert) in the cycle "The Ring of Latvia".

This exhibition gives an overview of the portrait, its classification and development, compositional determinants, and stylistic variations. It portrays the characteristic iconography of the 20th century, which, in comparison to the historical portrait, is closed to the contemporary aesthetic.

The final concert (a cinema concert) in the cycle "The Ring of Latvia".

Ten-year-old Zigis lives with his parents in Ķīpsala in a house by the Daugava River. In 1942 Latvia is occupied by German troops, and repressions of Jews begin in Riga.Zigis’ father, Žanis Lipke, devises a plan of saving the Jews who work at the factory and are destined for death.This experience gradually transformes Zigis into a mature teenager.

The travelling exhibition offers visitors an unprecedented insight into the writing and publishing that took place the between the two world wars with the opportunity to see the wide variety of publications printed between 1920 - 1930 in the three Baltic countries.

The exhibition provides an introduction to the Finnish Jaegers, a military unit founded during World War I.

We have man things in common with our neighbours Estonians but surprisingly enough this does not apply to contemporary performing arts. In the centre of the LATEST programme is a new collaborative work The First to Leave by eight Latvian and Estonian artists.

The story of the idealistic teacher and poet Violet and social democratic fighter Pelēkais, whose fates intertwine during the revolution of 1905

A group exhibition by young contemporary artists from Latvia and France (curators - Barbara Sirieix and Joachim Hamou). The theoretical essay Active Art (Aktīvā māksla) by Latvian poet, author, and doctor Andrejs Kurcijs (1884 - 1959) serves as the basis for the exhibition.

This exhibition provides an overview of the powerful symbols of Latvia's national and local visual identity - coats of arms - in all of the Latvian historical regions: Kurzeme, Latgale, Vidzeme, and Zemgale.

The final concert (a cinema concert) in the cycle "The Ring of Latvia".

This cycle of events is dedicated to one of the periods in the process of the creation of the Latvian state - for six months in 1919 the Latvian provisional government lives and worked on the steamship Saratov just off the coast of Liepāja.

Hotel Pro Forma and Latvian Radio Choir continue the award-winning collaboration in a new visual music performance. NeoArctic is stimulating, poetic, and moving musical performance about the Anthropocene - our new geological age, characterised by unprecendented impact on the Earth's ecosystems.

A story about the KGB archive and the evaluation of history in the renewed Latvia.

Shortly before the centenary celebration - 8 November 2018 in Arēna Rīga for the first and only time in Latvia's history a unique rock opera Lāčplēsis performance will take place. This will be a grand event as it will join together a specially assembled symphonic orchestra but also the united Latvian Nation's Choir.

The highly esteemed Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra performs with the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music Orchestra, pianist Yefim Bronfman and conductor Danielle Gatti.

In the wait of Latvia's centenary, the grand concert Latvijas gadsimts (Latvian Century) will be taking place in Arēna Rīga. The concert will bring Latvia's most popular actors and singers to the stage, lead by director Jānis Mūrnieks and will take everyone on a musical journey covering a century.

A permanent interactive exhibition for children and young people about the historical events of the Latvian War for Independence that allow visitors to try out the technical and visual possibilities now available with technology and model building.

This exhibition tells the story of the years 1918-1919 in Cēsis, the Latvian Provisional Government, and other significant events (such as the story of the Flag of Latvia) that facilitated the creation of the Republic of Latvia during the 20th century.

In 2017 the Orchestra Rīga began a new tradition, the Three Star Festival, which takes place in November and is dedicated to Latvia's State Centenary. Each year the festival plans three special concerts where music created by Latvian composers is thematically tied to a particular event in Latvian history.

This unique Concert/Oratorio weaves a story out of text excerpts from Baltic German activist Garlieb Merkel's historical work The Latvians, and poet Vizma Belševica's volume Indriķis Latvian Notes in the Margins of the Livonian Chronicle put to music by beloved Latvian composer and vocalist Niks Matvejevs in 1988.

Performances for school-age children that will allow them to travel one hundred years into the past to get a sense of the period and imagine themselves as those strategically-minded activists working to found a new state, as adventuresome youth or random bystanders, who were on the spot when Latvian independence was proclaimed.

Within the framework of the Riga Photography Biennial 2018 Marie Sjøvold solo exhibition "They Crept into Their Father’s Sleep" will be on view in Liepāja Museum.

The title of the exhibition is a reference to the anthology by Rainis, “END & BEGINNING”. The poet explains the introductory part of the anthology, “Coming to Your Senses”, in this way: “A person comes to one’s senses, and realizes the necessity to look for the meaning of existence”.

In the wait of Latvia's centenary, the grand concert Latvijas gadsimts (Latvian Century) will be taking place in Arēna Rīga. The concert will bring Latvia's most popular actors and singers to the stage, lead by director Jānis Mūrnieks and will take everyone on a musical journey covering a century.

Each year on 11 November, the Latvian Museum of National History displays the only known complete set of Order of Lāčplēsis, which were received by Jānis Balodis (1882 - 1965) for his outstanding service during the Latvian War for Independence. The Museum has planned a wide range of special exhibitions in honour of Lāčplēsis Day.