Twenty Speakers, But Three Poets: Writing in Livonian
Two books of poetry originally written in the Livonian language, spoken by just twenty people, have recently appeared in English translationContinue Reading →
The Unbuilt Soviet Metro System that Haunts Latvia's Capital: Struggle
“In total, these 172 letters were signed by 1,965 people. There were 1,964 votes against the construction of the metro."Continue Reading →
The Unbuilt Soviet Metro System that Haunts Latvia's Capital: Beginnings
Riga was down for a metro – a formally and conceptually adventurous system that would have been the most expensive ever built in the Soviet UnionContinue Reading →
Bridges of Time: How Baltic "Poetic Documentaries" Exposed Soviet Reality
"They helped audiences to learn to see... not only to watch, but to see. To see and think and read between the lines."Continue Reading →
Revealing a City of Legends, Myths and Stories: the Book of Riga
Almost every single corner of Riga has its own story. The Book of Riga offers some of them up, and will hopefully lead you to many more.Continue Reading →
"The Waters Must Break" – Pauls Bankovskis
"I discovered masturbation at almost the same time that I discovered the map of Latvia..."Continue Reading →
Sixteen Thousand Voices in Perfect Harmony: Latvia's Incredible Song Festival
Latvia's huge Song and Dance Festival has been recognised as a masterpiece of humanity by UNESCO – and its participants are increasingly multinationalContinue Reading →
DB Recommends: Mācītājs On Acid
Maarja Merivoo-Parro tells us why we should all be listening to some legendary Latvian-American punkContinue Reading →
Intrigue and Seduction in Courland: the Strange, Brief Reign of Duke Maurice
"It is interesting to imagine how Europe may have changed had Maurice controlled his libido more effectively."Continue Reading →
Faith and Pride in Hard Times: Igor Trepeshchenok's Images of Latgale
Igor Trepeshchenok is a Latvian photographer currently based in Hamburg, as well as the founder of Ost SEE magazine, which publicises photographers from the Baltic states. His previous works have…Continue Reading →
Welcome to Maskačka: Stig Stasig's Images of Latvia's Troubled '90s
In 1991, Danish photographer Stig Stasig moved to Riga, capital of newly free Latvia. His photos of inner-city life capture a unique moment in its historyContinue Reading →
A Dream in the Latvian Countryside: Remaking the National Painter's House
In 1998, Dutch museologist Margriet Lestraden bought the remote birth house of "the father of Latvian art", a man she then knew nothing about.Continue Reading →