Exhibition marking 90 years of the Riga Brethren Cemetery opens at Rīgas Latviešu biedrības nams

Ninety years after the completion of the Riga Brethren Cemetery memorial, the public will have the opportunity to see one of the most significant works documenting Latvia’s memorial sculpture. On Monday, 9 November, at 15:00, the exhibition “90 Years of the Riga Brethren Cemetery: Mother Latvia” will open at Rīgas Latviešu biedrības nams. It features Kārlis Zāle’s original plaster model for the central figure of the sculptural group “Mother Latvia with Her Fallen Sons.”

The exhibition’s main object is a fragment of the unique original plaster model created by sculptor Kārlis Zāle in 1928. It shows the composition’s central figure, “Mother Latvia,” which served as the basis for the monumental sculptural group at the Riga Brethren Cemetery and later became one of Latvia’s most recognisable memorial symbols. The model is an important testament to Latvia’s sculptural heritage, offering insight into Kārlis Zāle’s artistic vision and working process as he created one of the most significant compositions in Latvian memorial art.

This year marks 90 years since the completion of the Riga Brethren Cemetery memorial. The ensemble was solemnly consecrated on 11 November 1936. The Riga Brethren Cemetery is Latvia’s most significant military memorial. Its artistic design was created by sculptor Kārlis Zāle, landscape architect Andrejs Zeidaks, architect Aleksandrs Birzenieks and artist Pēteris Feders. At the centre of the ensemble stands the monumental group “Mother Latvia with Her Fallen Sons.”

The model on display is a regional-level art monument. Its central figure was restored and partially reconstructed at the Restoration Department of Rīgas Būvniecības koledža under the direction of sculptor Guntars Vāgners. The exhibition was created by Rīgas pieminekļu aģentūra in cooperation with Rīgas Būvniecības koledža and Rīgas Latviešu biedrība. It can be viewed at Rīgas Latviešu biedrības nams, Merķeļa iela 13, Riga.