Art historian Edvarda Šmite’s lecture: “Teodors Zaļkalns at 150” | Turaida Museum Reserve

On Teodors’ name day, Turaida Museum Reserve invites you to a gathering at the new residential house of the Turaida Manor steward, where art historian Edvarda Šmite will give the lecture “Teodors Zaļkalns. 1876–2026”. Together, we will remember and get to know our local artist better.

The 150th anniversary of Teodors Zaļkalns’ birth is a special occasion to look back on his long and creative life: the family in which he grew up, seven decades devoted to art, and works that once represented—and continue to represent—Latvia and its art. Sigulda and Allaži hold a special place in this story. Teodors Zaļkalns was born here, at “Zaļais kalns” (“Green Hill”), in 1876. The Sigulda and Allaži surroundings remained part of his life as an adult, too: he returned here to rest, work and find inspiration. The rural landscape and animal life of these places inspired one of the most distinctive aspects of his work: animal sculptures.

Teodors Zaļkalns was one of the founders of professional Latvian sculpture and an important contributor to the tradition of stone sculpture. His life and creative journey took him from Allaži and Riga to St Petersburg and Paris, where he also studied with the celebrated French sculptor Auguste Rodin. In the 1920s, Zaļkalns became one of the creators of the visual identity of the new Latvian state, taking part in major monument design competitions and creating works that still shape Latvia’s cultural landscape. Sculptures by Zaļkalns have also been preserved in Sigulda Municipality and Turaida: the memorial plaque to the Rose of Turaida, and monuments to Atis Kronvalds, Krišjānis Barons and Alfrēds Kalniņš, which attest to the artist’s close connection with this place.

During the lecture, visitors will also be able to see the exhibition “Tail-Wagging Companions. Teodors Zaļkalns’ Animal Sculptures”. It brings together nine animal figures created by Zaļkalns from the collection of the Latvian National Museum of Art: “Cat”, “Lamb”, “Hare”, “Little Mouse”, and several versions of one of the artist’s best-known works, “Pig”. The exhibition is open until 30 November.

Link to register for the event: here!

Photo by Edgars Semanis. Photograph from the exhibition of works by T. Zaļkalns at Turaida Museum Reserve, “Tail-Wagging Companions”.