The Northern Administrative Territory of the city of Riga is home to three major cultural sites – the VEF Culture Palace, the Culture Palace ZIEMEĻBLĀZMA and the MEŽAPARKS GRAND BANDSTAND. All these cultural spaces are of special importance for the cultural life of Latvia – each has its own cultural, historical and architectonic value, which amalgamate into a single historical narrative, from the age of Art Nouveau and to this day, transforming and remoulding, but unfailingly preserving the mission of each of these cultural sites and playing an essential role in shaping the image of Riga, the capital of Latvia, on an international scale.
The Culture Palace ZIEMEĻBLĀZMA and the MEŽAPARKS GRAND BANDSTAND have been brought into a single ensemble with the VEF Culture Palace on August 17, 2021, and as the administrative operations of these 3 facilities were being bundled together, the Riga Municipal Institution THE CULTURE ASSOCIATION OF NORTHERN RIGA has been founded.
Considering the historical importance and content of each of these cultural sites, further operations thereof focus at the conceptual implementation of a common strategic vision, whilst bringing forward, accentuating and inter-synthesising such values as HISTORY, MODERNITY AND INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY.
Establishment of the Culture Association of Northern Riga allows securing and promoting a range of activities in the development of these three cultural sites:
- Provision of multi-functional opportunities at technical, ideal and artistic levels, encompassing culture, cultural education and history of culture, tourism, sports and entertainment activities, continuity of the Song and Dance Festival tradition and synthesis of cutting-edge, innovative ideas and technologies in keeping with the times.
- A platform for event planning, availability of public information, rental and marketing strategy with common coordination, ensuring openness and accessibility of cultural locations and public information.
- Creation and development of a territorially spatial, professionally potent and supportive environment for private, municipal, nationwide and international processes in Riga, ensuring simple, coordinated and supportive cooperation.
- A full and complete package of cultural, tourist and business offers in the northern areas of Riga, with the development of tourist, business, cultural and historical routes, inclusion of these cultural centres into the international cultural, tourist and business developments, as well as ensuring accessibility of the territory of the Mežaparks Grand Bandstand for the public all the year round.
- Stimulating active participation and involvement of the public in cultural events and processes, promotion of cross-cultural dialogue, conducing the integration process, augmenting the diversity of cultural opportunities, attracting visitors and culture-minded people from various groups and strata of the population; support, coordination and promotion of artistic activities by creative amateur teams, support and implementation of high-quality and high-value processes of professional art.
- Comprehension and preservation of cultural heritage, creative interpretation of cultural and historical values, retaining roots deep in the past, which have to be activated and developed, along with innovations, active creative pursuit and experiments as today’s trends in the implementation, revitalisation and succession of traditions and new ideas.
In the activities of the Culture Association of Northern Riga, the precious contribution of professionals is balanced and intertwined with the creative work and imagination of enthusiastic arts amateurs. Choirs, dancing groups, studios and hobby clubs provide each and every one with broad and diverse opportunities for the development of one’s creative abilities. This is where artistic continuity is born, and people make this place into a creative territory where one can perpetuate talents, experiment, share and receive joy over and over.