A design idea for the Džemma’s House exhibition
2021

The house in Mežaparks, on Stockholm Street 11, Riga, is built in 1961. Now the Art Space of Džemma Skulme is created here. One of the three hexagon-shaped rooms is allocated for the exhibitions about the life and creative activities of Džemma Skulme. The exhibitions are based on thematic stories, and the first one is dedicated to the story of Džemma’s early youth.

The Dd based its idea for the exhibition on the history of the room – initially, it was Džemma’s father Otto Skulme’s workshop, but since the end of the sixties it became the family’s Great Room of 60 m2. Using the preserved authentic furniture of that time, as well as the works by the artists, an atmosphere of both an artist’s studio and a place of friendly gatherings is created. The materials available for the first exhibition about Džemma’s youth period (late 1930s – early 1940s) are mainly letters received from classmates and family, as well as Džemma’s light stories with drawings and comics. Using modern means of presentation, this material is transformed into an interactive audio-visual story, creating an idea of the artist’s life. Otto Skulme’s portraits of Džemma of that time and Marta Liepiņa-Skulme’s sculptures are exhibited, and they show the living and art space where the young artist was formed.