Vilhelms Purvītis

The founder and moderniser of national landscape painting, Vilhelms Purvītis (1872–1945), is one of the key figures in Latvian visual art of the first half of the 20th century. At the turn of the century, this accomplished painter of spring landscapes was noticed in St. Petersburg, Paris and other European art centres. The representative of Baltic modern art was involved as equal in the transformations of the genre of landscape, achieving success both in Latvia and abroad.

In Latvian art history, the name of this European Latvian classic has become one of the symbols of national identity. As poetic archetypes, his images and moods retain their presence in our sense of the landscapes that surround us. The painter's vision of nature and his classically composed Latvian landscapes in changing seasons are considered to be the canon of national landscape.

Purvītis deserves particular recognition as an implementer of the idea of higher artistic
education and one of the architects of the cultural policy in Latvia, as the first
rector of the Art Academy of Latvia and head of the Landscape Painting Master Class, director of the prestigious Riga City Art Museum (now Latvian National Museum of Art), creator of the national art collection and organiser of international exhibitions.

Booklet of the coin in print format