Jāzeps Grosvalds

Who was Jāzeps Grosvalds?

Jazeps Grosvalds was a Latvian painter from Riga. He is now regarded as one of Latvia's finest painters and has several works on display in the Latvian National Museum of Art. His style is a combination of European Modernism and Abstract with a distinctly Latvian influence. A student of Simon Hollósy's school in Munich, Grosvalds went to Paris in 1910 where he studied at several private academies until 1914. In addition to this, he immersed himself in the flourishing art scene of the time, studying both modern art as well as the old masters.

In 1914, just as war was breaking out over Europe, Grosvalds returned to Riga with Konrads Ubans, Valdemars Tone and Aleksandrs Derevins. They were determined to create something new - an exciting, challenging and emphatically Latvian art movement. They set up the artists' circle Zala puke, which transformed over time firstly into the Expressionists' Group and then the Riga Artists Group.

Grosvalds pioneered a new theme in Latvian art by portraying scenes of war - soldiers and refugees alike. When Latvia found itself in World War I, Grosvalds joined up for active service and relayed this experience into his art. Grosvalds joined the British Expeditionary Group as a Russian officer in 1917 and travelled to the Near East; these experiences were documented in the Oriental series, 1918–1919, and the Tableaux-Persans essay.