Art Nouveau Architecture Walk (Self Guided), Riga

An architecture lover in general and that of Art Nouveau in particular will find plenty to look at in the quiet center of Riga. Jūgendstil (Latvian: Art Nouveau) architecture makes up roughly one third of all buildings in the heart of Latvia's capital. In fact, the city boasts the highest concentration of Art Nouveau structures anywhere in the world.

Constructed during a period of rapid economic growth, most of Riga's Art Nouveau dates between 1904 and 1914. The style is most commonly represented in multi-story apartment blocks.

As elsewhere, the Art Nouveau movement in Riga was driven by a desire to express greater individuality, with a touch of local flair, whilst creating a more rational kind of architecture than that prevalent during the 19th century. Stylistically, Riga's Art Nouveau can be fitted into four main categories: Eclectic or Decorative; Perpendicular or Vertical; National Romantic; and Neo-Classical.

However, such categorization is not always mutually exclusive, as many Art Nouveau buildings in Riga are a combination of several styles. The earliest ones, built before 1905, were of this exact type. Arguably the most famous of them – designed in Eclectic style – are a row of houses along Alberta Iela (Albert Street), architected predominantly by the Russian civil engineer Mikhail Eisenstein (father of the legendary film director Sergei Eisenstein). Similarly important in this respect are Eisenstein's other creations, such as the multi-story house at 4a Strēlnieku Iela and those in Elizabetes Iela (Elizabeth Street).

Still, the best place to start one's voyage into Art Nouveau Riga is the Rīgas Jūgendstila Centrs (Art Nouveau Centre) which highlights the key aspects of this movement. If you're keen to learn more about and find your way around the prominent sights of Art Nouveau architecture in Riga, take our self-guided walking tour!