Dear friends of the MuseumLV art gallery at the Grata JJ Cultural Centre!

Due to technical reasons, tomorrow, 09.09.2026, the MuseumLV Gallery will be open from 1:00 PM.

Thank you for your understanding, and we look forward to welcoming you!

Dear colleagues and friends of the MuseumLV art gallery at the Grata JJ Cultural Centre!

We are delighted to announce the winner of the Audience Choice Award. The audience vote was won by Daniils Vjatkins with the work “Iconostasis”. A total of 172 gallery visitors voted for this work.

We would like to remind you that the other two GRATA BALVA 2026 awards were presented at the exhibition opening.

The GRATA BALVA 2026 was awarded to artist Baiba Zalcmane for the work “Forgiveness” (2025, fringe, acrylic, wool, effect yarn, fabric, 192 × 290 cm).

Meanwhile, the Curator’s Award, along with the opportunity to hold a solo exhibition at the MuseumLV gallery, was awarded to artist Ieva Kalēja for the work “Water Tower. Autumn on Ganību Dambis” (2026, oil on canvas, 65 × 45 cm).

This year, 86 artists took part in the competition, while the exhibition featured 113 works of art and installations. During the exhibition, the works of the participating artists were viewed by thousands of residents of Latvia and visitors to our country.

As part of the project, various public and closed events, guided tours, and meetings with artists were held. The exhibition curator, Doctor of Art (Dr. art.) Deniss Hanovs, led special tours for representatives of diplomatic missions and members of the Riga City Council, introducing guests to the exhibition concept and the works of the artists represented in it. The project was also covered by Latvian media and leading information portals.

A special part of the exhibition was the interactive QUIZ “Find the Different!”, which invited visitors to become art researchers. Participants had to identify fragments of paintings and sculptures, restore missing information in the descriptions, and find the corresponding works in the exhibition. In this way, the viewer became not only an observer, but also an active participant in the artistic process.

The MuseumLV gallery and Grata JJ Cultural Centre team sincerely thanks all the artists for participating in the project, for their courageous creative expressions, diverse interpretations of the theme, and professional work.

For us, GRATA BALVA 2026 “Multilayered Identity: Encountering the Other in Urban Space” was a significant, fulfilling, and inspiring event — a space for encounters, dialogue, and new discoveries. We thank the artists, curators, partners, visitors, and everyone who accompanied us on this journey.

See you next year — with new artists, new works, new stories, and new encounters with art!

Dear Participants of the GRATA BALVA 2026 Competition,

The team of MuseumLV Gallery and GrataJJ Cultural Centre sincerely thanks you for your participation in the project “Multilayered Identity: Encountering Otherness in Urban Space.” We greatly appreciate your creative perspectives on this year’s theme, its diverse interpretations, as well as the thoughtful and professional execution of your works.

This year, 86 artists took part in the competition, while 113 works and installations were presented in the exhibition. During the exhibition, thousands of residents and visitors of Latvia had the opportunity to discover and experience your creative works.

Several public and private events were organised as part of the competition and exhibition, giving visitors the opportunity to learn more about the participating artists and their work. This year, the exhibition curator, Doctor of Arts (Dr. art.) Deniss Hanovs, also conducted special guided tours for representatives of embassies and members of the Riga City Council, introducing them to the exhibition’s concept and the works of the artists represented in the competition. The project was also featured in various media outlets and leading Latvian information portals.

Working on the GRATA BALVA 2026 project has been a meaningful and inspiring experience for us. We were delighted to communicate with each artist, discover their creative stories, and hear the impressions of the exhibition’s visitors. We sincerely hope to welcome you again in our future projects at MuseumLV Gallery and GrataJJ Cultural Centre.

We highly value your contribution, creative energy, and commitment to personal growth and to the development of Latvia’s cultural and artistic environment.

We would like to remind you that 11 September is the final day of the exhibition “Multilayered Identity: Encountering Otherness in Urban Space.” We kindly ask you to collect your work during the gallery’s working days between 25 September and 24 October.

We are also pleased to invite you to the opening of the gallery’s next exhibition on 24 September – Denijs Berkovskis “The Adventures of Saint Ilya in the Land of Childhood Dreams.” The invitation will be sent at a later date.

Kind regards,
The team of MuseumLV Gallery and GrataJJ Cultural Centre

Dear gallery MuseumLV and Grata JJ cultural centre friends and colleagues!

From September 24 to November 27, 2026, the exhibition “The Adventures of Saint Il (Svyatoy Ilj) in the Land of Children's Dreams” by artist  Danny Berkovskii   will be on view at MuseumLV Art Gallery, located in the Grata JJ Cultural Center.

The exhibition “The Adventures of Saint Il (Svyatoy Ilj) in the Land of Children's Dreams” explores themes of childhood memory, loss, emigration, and the search for a new identity. Its central figure, Ilj (French for he), becomes a guide through the realms of dreams, memory, and inner transformation, connecting the artist’s personal experience with universal questions of growing up, compassion, and overcoming the legacy of the post-imperial past. Danny Berkovskii’s vibrant paintings, distinguished by their bold use of colour and symbolic imagery, invite viewers into an emotional dialogue with their own memories and inner world.

Author’s CV

Danny Berkovskii is an artist, illustrator, and curator born in Bashkortostan, currently living and working in Marseille, France. Through his painting, he explores themes of memory, childhood, new masculinity, religion, and personal identity, combining elements of surrealism, conceptualism, and pop art. Rich in symbolism and references to personal experience, post-Soviet culture, and Mordovian mythology, his works form a cohesive artistic universe under the motto A BOY IS NOT A GUN.

Sincerely,

Gallery MuseumLV and Culture centre JJ  

After a short summer break, MuseumLV Gallery is once again opening its doors and welcoming the new season.

We have new projects, new exhibitions, exhibition openings, and meetings with our friends, visitors, artists, and contemporary art enthusiasts ahead. We are already actively preparing the events of the upcoming season, and very soon we will tell you more about what we have in store for you.

In the meantime, we are pleased to announce that the Grata Balva 2026 exhibition “Multilayered Identity: Encountering Otherness in Urban Space” has been extended until 12 September, inclusive.

We invite you to take this opportunity to visit the exhibition and discover the artworks presented as part of the show.

May the new season be filled with inspiration, creative discoveries, and meaningful encounters!

See you at MuseumLV Gallery!

Cienījamie galerijas viesi, draugi un sadarbības partneri!

Informējam, ka no 11. līdz 31. augustam galerija MuseumLV būs slēgta vasaras atvaļinājuma dēļ.

Pateicamies ikvienam, kurš šajā sezonā apmeklēja mūsu izstādes, piedalījās pasākumos un bija kopā ar mums.

Jau septembrī atgriezīsimies ar jaunu enerģiju un priecāsimies Jūs atkal sagaidīt galerijā – jaunajā izstāžu sezonā, kurā gaidāmi jauni projekti, tikšanās un iedvesmojoši notikumi.

Uz tikšanos septembrī!

MuseumLV galerija

Dear friends of MuseumLV Gallery,

We would like to remind you that the exhibition "Encountering the Other" will remain open until August 8 (inclusive) and will reopen for a short period from September 1 to September 11.

We warmly invite you to take this opportunity to explore the artistic worlds of our fellow artists and discover their reflections on the Other in the urban environment.

Thank you for your interest and support. We look forward to welcoming you to the exhibition!

Kind regards,

MuseumLV Gallery

Dear Colleagues and Friends of the MuseumLV Art Gallery at Grata JJ Cultural Centre,

We warmly invite you to a special closing guided tour with the exhibition curator, Dr. art. Deniss Hanovs. This will be the final opportunity to revisit the international exhibition and competition “Multilayered Identity: Encountering the Other in Urban Space” and experience the exhibition through the curator’s perspective, even after its official closing.

During the tour, the curator will introduce the exhibition’s concept and discuss works by artists from Latvia and abroad, exploring the connections between them, their symbolic meanings, and their broader cultural context. This is a rare opportunity to discover the exhibition from a new perspective, delving into the themes of identity, belonging, imagination, and the urban experience that unite the exhibition.

Event Information

Date: 5 August 2026

Time: 6:00 PM

Venue: MuseumLV Gallery, 2 A. Pumpura Street, Riga

Guided by: Dr. art. Deniss Hanovs

Language: Latvian

Admission: €5

Registration: No advance registration required

Capacity: Up to 25 participants

Don't miss this unique opportunity to conclude the exhibition’s story together with its curator and discover new meanings hidden within the artworks.

Everyone is warmly welcome!

Riga Last Thursday at MuseumLV Gallery!

Gallery Night will take place on July 30.Visit the annual exhibition of the international visual art competition Grata Balva 2026, titled “Layered Identity: Encountering the Other in Urban Space.”

On this evening, the gallery will be open until 9:00 PM.

Free admission from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM.

  See you at MuseumLV!