Visit of King Frederik X and Queen Mary of Denmark to Latvia
On 28 and 29 October His Majesty King Frederik X of Denmark and Her Majesty Queen Mary of Denmark visited Riga. During their visit the royal couple participated in a cultural programme prepared by the Danish Cultural Institute (DCI) together with local partners.
In his speech at the State dinner His Majesty King Frederik X mentioned the significance of the cultural ties between Latvia and Denmark, the power of culture and the establishment of the Danish Cultural Institute even before an Embassy could be opened in Riga.
On 28 October Their Majesties The King and Queen of Denmark visited the Latvian Academy of Culture, where the Minister of Culture, Agnese Lāce, and the Dean of the Academy, Dāvis Sīmanis welcomed them.
The Regional Director of the Danish Cultural Institute, Anna Enemark, had the honour of introducing Their Majesties to a project that began as Denmark’s gift to Latvia on its 100th anniversary. The renovation of the current Latvian Academy of Culture buildings at the former Tobacco Factory site began with an international design competition supported by Denmark. The Danish Cultural Institute served as a bridge between the Latvian and Danish sides and helped to attract funding from Denmark for the competition, as both countries are united by a shared interest in developing the creative industries.
The winner of the design competition, No Rules Just Architecture, presented the renovated complex to the Royal Couple.
During the visit to the Academy of Culture we had the opportunity to experience the unifying effect of music by listening to the mixed choir SOLA and the Danish vocal group UngKlang performing together for the Royal Couple. The potential of collective singing is also explored in the joint project of the Latvian Academy of Culture and Aarhus University CRIES (Crisis Established Singing), which was presented to the Royal Couple led by professor Rūta Muktupāvela (LAC) and Katrine Laigaard Baunvig (AU).
After the visit to the Latvian Academy of Culture, King Frederik X and Queen Mary, together with Minister of Culture Agnese Lāce, took a short walk through the Quiet Center of Riga, where they were introduced to the city’s architectural and cultural heritage by architect Reinis Liepiņš.
As part of the cultural programme, the Danish vocal group UngKlang and singers from the Riga Cathedral Choir School gave a joint performance of the Latvian piece “Dindaru Dandaru” by Laura Jakobsone during the reception held in honour of the Danish Official State Visit to Latvia at the Latvian National Museum of Art.
Photos by Oskars Kupics.
