Truth in Letters and Beyond

The Janis Rozentāls and Rūdolfs Blaumanis Museum (Riga, Alberta Street 12-9) invites you to attend an event on Sunday, March 23, at 3:00 PM, dedicated to the 159th birthday of Janis Rozentāls. The event will take place in the museum's exhibition hall, where the displayed exhibition “Postcard to Rozentāls” reveals lesser-known yet interesting and significant details of Janis Rozentāls' biography.

More than 500 letters and postcards sent and received by Janis Rozentāls have survived to this day. Rozentāls' correspondence is an invaluable source of information for anyone wishing to study the artist's life. It offers a glimpse into the world of thoughts and ideas expressed by the painter, understanding his artistic intentions, tracing his near and distant journeys, and also unveiling aspects of Rozentāls' relationships with family and friends. Piecing together the mosaic of the artist's biography, comprised of correspondence, periodical writings, contemporaries' recollections, and artworks, a multifaceted portrait of Rozentāls emerges, with certain vivid features highlighted by the testimonies of other personalities related to the artist, including the writings of his wife Ellija to her relatives in Finland. Yielding to subjective interpretation of sources, some publications depict the artist's personality portrait in sharp and expressive lines, yet it is never dull or unremarkable.

Event attendees will have the opportunity to listen to art historian Dace Vosa's presentation, “Truth in Letters and Beyond,” and tour the exhibition “Postcard from Rozentāls” with a guide, as well as explore the museum's permanent exhibition, including the renovated Rūdolfs Blaumanis room.