Graffiti is nothing new as ancient scribblings have been discovered in Roman ruins and Egyptian temples. It seems that since time immemorial humans have had a need to express themselves or at least to etch a somewhat lasting message for future generations even if it only reads ‘I was here’. Unfortunately, much of what we see today in Riga’s urban landscape is sad and pointless. These ill-conceived tags by pubescent hooligans who’ve yet to discover similarly vain pursuits on social media pages are the scourge of the city and even medieval churches and centuries-old tombstones haven’t been spared from this blight. Unintelligible marks on dilapidated buildings and recently renovated facades often make one feel as if they’ve entered a New York City housing project circa 1975. Thankfully, proper street art that can be both beautiful and insightful can also be found on the ‘mean streets’ of the Latvian capital if you know where to look.
Unfortunately, most of the street art locations are spread out across the city, so it’s hard to make a convenient and comprehensive walking tour of them all in one day. With this in mind we’ve added the closest, if not entirely related sights underneath each location, so you don’t have to travel to the ends of the earth just to see one mural. Here then are some of our favourites.