The White Night contemporary culture forum will take place for the 18th time in Riga, on Saturday, 9 September. Event visitors will enjoy concerts, performances, exhibitions and dance presentations with circus elements, which will be held in the Old Town, Pārdaugava, Pļavnieki, Teika, Brasa, Vecmīlgrāvis, and Sarkandaugava neighbourhoods, as well as observe the creation of a large mural in the Tallinas Quarter.
This year’s special theme is Hidden Truths, as every big truth consists of many small truths, and every idea is a combination of different influences or sources of inspiration. Hiding behind every work of art are ideas and themes that can be art in their own right. White Night will encourage guests to look for hidden truths—mysteries, subtexts, contradictions—in this year’s works and projects, to critically examine the themes that matter to our modern society and the world.
Guests will be invited to take familiar White Night routes and find new paths through the city. The concert programme features the traditional ‘Skaņu Meža Baltā nakts’ and Videogrāfija audiovisual music performances, while the bands Alejas and Kautkaili, and the ‘Putnu disko’ performance will create new impressions.
An ethno-disco night will make noise at Rātslaukums Square in the Old Town, while the Balsis youth choir and its conductor, Inta Teterovska, will offer somewhat calmer compositions at the Lielie Cemetery of the Riga Lutheran Church of Resurrection, which celebrates its 250th anniversary this year. Not far from there, the VEF culture palace will offer a selection of 21st-century contemporary music featuring the Rīga orchestra, the Atomos SAXOPHONE QUARTET and international guest performers.
Poetry lovers will be welcome at the RISEBA H2O quarter, where electronic music, theatrical performances, and videos will accompany poetry readings.
The National Library of Latvia also invites visitors to see its special White Night programme in Pārdaugava, while the Zvaigzne ABC publishing house will offer a music and literature programme in its K. Valdemāra Street courtyard.
This year’s White Night special urban object will be the Bing bang 850 outdoor installation by Swiss artist Etienne Krähenbühl, presented at Neatkarības Square. It represents the artist’s vision of how the Cosmos was set in motion with the Big Bang. Its 850 metallic tube elements represent the Big Bang in a spherical shape that can be interpreted both as a planet and an atom, as if seen through a microscope. The sphere swings, pulsates, oscillates and recedes, transmitting the sound of the Cosmos with every motion, as its observers become witnesses to the artist’s impression of the first sounds that rang out at the beginning of the Cosmos.
Artists from the ‘Dievišķā ģeometrija’ (Divine Geometry) project have also been pondering existential questions. Their art installation, which will be set up inside Riga’s Saint Mary Magdalene Church, symbolises the unity and interconnectedness of all things.
The youngest members of White Night’s audience are invited to Kronvalda Park to watch the Cēsis Mazais Theatre perform the children’s show Figūras at 15:00, 17:00, and 19:00, while starting at 18:00, the Splendid Palace cinema will screen a number of short films for children. There will also be shows by ‘zīmējumu teātris’ and a chance to participate in a sound recording workshop for a film.
A few exhibition spaces and art galleries, including the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, the Art Museum Riga Bourse and the Riga Art Space exhibition hall, will also prepare special White Night exhibition programmes for their guests.
White Night will take place from 12:00 on 9 September until 2:00 on 10 December. All White Night events are free of charge. The idea underlying the forum is the desire to open the city to contemporary art activities for a whole night, offering a broad and diverse selection of cultural events.
White Night 2023 forum programme
For all cultural and educational events held by the Riga City Council in autumn, visit www.rudens.riga.lv and the Riga City Council ‘Rīgā notiek’ and ‘Rīgā mācās’ accounts on Facebook. All events are free to attend.
Information prepared by: Sindija Grāvere, Project Coordinator External Communication Division of Riga City Council, email: sindija.gravere@riga.lv