Riga - Dominante

Riga has the highest concentration of Art Nouveau architecture in the world. Most of the Art Nouveau buildings were built during a period of rapid economic growth between 1904 and 1914.

By the end of the 19th century, Riga was an important city in the Russian Empire. Between 1897 and 1913, the city grew by 88%, reaching a population of 530,000 in 1914.

As Latvian urban population declined heavily during WW1, reducing the need for new construction. That said, Latvia just became independent and thus launched some projects to assert the Latvianess of its cities. Original Historicist and Art Nouveau styles effectively came to an end. The architects of the new buildings were influenced by the Bauhaus style. The buildings had relatively simple facades, the only decorations being various lines on the facade, window forms and the form of the building itself.

The Dominante building is from 1939. At that time it was the highest "secular" building in Riga, only the church towers were higher.