RIGA.- On Thursday, 3 April 2025, at a press conference at the Latvian National Museum of Art, the establishment of the Vija Celmins Foundation Grant to support Latvian visual artists was anounced.


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Vija Celmins Foundation Grant

The Vija Celmins Foundation Inc., established in the United States to promote culture, in collaboration with the Latvian National Museum of Art (LNMA) and Latvian-born American artist Vija Celmins, will award an annual grant of 30,000 USD to one Latvian artist who works in the field of visual arts, starting from 2025. The Vija Celmins Foundation has pledged to fund the grant for ten years – from October 2025 until October 2034.

The aim of the grant is to support actively practicing Latvian artists or individual members of an artist group who have demonstrated high artistic merit in their creative careers. Vija Celmins has always taken an interest in the Latvian art scene and the fate of Latvian artists, how they, despite often limited opportunities, manage to practice art and maintain creative freedom. Vija Celmins wishes to promote art patronage in Latvia, believing that it is the duty of every wealthy individual to donate to a socially significant cause. “Folow your art and go where it takes you. To make art is to pursue what you cannot say,” Vija Celmins inspires the applicants.

“Vija Celmins has always attached importance to the artist and his work of art. Yet when speaking about someone’s successes and failures, Celmins is rather direct in her judgements, often expressing a fairly critical attitude. At the same time, she knows what the path in art means. Also, that sometimes a helping hand is necessary in order for something truly valuable to appear and develop. This desire to support the artist-creator and, as I see it, a deeply-felt belonging to Latvia has grown into the idea for the Vija Celmins Foundation Grant. We are very grateful to Vija Celmins for her trust in the Latvian National Museum of Art,” says Māra Lāce, LNMA Director.

“Ellex Kļaviņš law firm is truly honoured to stand beside the Latvian National Museum of Art and support outstanding initiatives that promote the growth of Latvian contemporary art. For over eight years, our co-operation with the LNMA has been based on a shared conviction of the importance of art in the development of society. We believe that companies also have a role to play in the shaping of the culture scene, and the Vija Celmins Foundation Grant today is an extraordinarily significant step towards sustainable patronage in Latvia. The values of our law firm have always involved support for Latvian art and the LNMA and we are delighted to continue this tradition,” emphasizes Raimonds Slaidiņš, Senior Partner at the law firm Ellex Kļaviņš, the representative of the Vija Celmins Foundation Grant supporter.

Jury

To carry out the evaluation of the candidates’ applications for the grant and the selection of nominees, a jury of five experts has been set up. The jury includes one representative of the Latvian National Museum of Art and four invited experts in the field of Latvian contemporary art processes. In years 2025–2026, the recipient of the grant will be chosen by: Dr. art. Elita Ansone, Head of the Collections and Scientific Research Department ARSENĀLS (2nd Half of the 20th Century – Nowdays) at the LNMA, Zane Čulkstēna, founder of Kim? Contemporary Art Centre and the employer consulting company ERDA, member of the Council of the Art Academy of Latvia, Kaspars Groševs, artist, co-founder and curator of the artist-run gallery 427, Maija Kurševa, artist, founder of the LOW gallery and the Riga Zine Fest, exhibition curator, lecturer at the Art Academy of Latvia, Inga Meldere, artist.

After reviewing the grant applications, the jury will select five nominees, from which the Vija Celmins Foundation will choose one recipient of the grant.

After two years, a new group of experts will be assembled under the approval of the LNMA Director.


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