SILVIJA GROSA JŪGENDSTILA PERIODA PLASTISKAIS UN ...

the Neo-Gothic style is the office and apartment building of the Great Guild at
Amatu Street 4 (1902-1904, architect Bockslaff, plastic décor by Volz). There is
also the Neo-Baroque building of the Rīga City Museum (1903-1905, architect
Wilhelm Neumann).
In Rīga and throughout Latvia, designers of churches used a wide range of
historical styles. The use of plastic décor on the façades of houses of worship was
minimal, with only traditional iconographic motifs being utilised. Interpretations
of these motifs, however, did change, and the size of some of them in relation to
the surface of the façade was increased to create a new level of expressiveness
without losing the motifs’ conventional nature. An example of this is a fresco of
palms on the façade of the Church of the Holy Trinity (1902–1907, architect
Konstantīns Pēkšēns (along with Aleksandrs Vanags)).
IV.2. Variations on décor in the style of Historicism at the beginning of the
period
A series of residential buildings which were approved for construction in
1898 were designed on the basis of variations on the style of Historicism. These
buildings were presented in the aforementioned “Rīga and its Buildings”
publication which was issued by the Rīga Association of Architects. An example is
the residential building at Vīlandes Street 1, which was designed by Rudolf
Zirkwitz and is essentially in the style of “late Renaissance.” When it was built, it
was one of the most ornately decorated buildings in all Rīga. Despite its
traditionalism, in the context of other structures in the city, this one has décor
which is distinguished by great imagination, elegance, and distinct presentability,
with accents based on Neo-Baroque motifs. It might be added that this Zirkwitz
building was one of the first in Rīga to have motifs similar to the iconography of
Art Nouveau in the décor of its vestibule, with stylised Rococo forms used in that
décor (see Chapter VI – “Interior Décor During the Early Period and Golden Age
of Art Nouveau”). A presentable appearance could also be achieved with stylised
elements of the Neo-Gothic style (an example is the décor used for the residential
building at Citadeles Street 2, which was designed by Edmund von Trompowsky,
as well as the residential and commercial building at Kaļķu Street 6, which was
designed by Wilhelm Bockslaff.
IV.3. The appearance of Art Nouveau motifs and the durability of Historicism
Beginning in 1899, there was increasing interest in the iconography of Art
Nouveau in new building designs. One of the first buildings in Rīga with a façade
that was extensively decorated in accordance with the style (alongside individual
motifs based on historical styles) was a building for flats and shops at Audēju
Street 7/9. Owned by Alexander Grosset, it was designed by the architect Alfred
Aschenkampf in 1899. The décor on other buildings from the same period
represented an attempt that was typical of the era – to look for elements of
historical styles which would be in harmony with Art Nouveau. This involved
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