Exhibition at Dauderi “Gaidis Graudiņš – 100” devoted to Latvian cultural patron and collector

From 27 June the exhibition “Gaidis Graudiņš – 100” is on view at the Dauderi Division of the Latvian National Museum of History (Zāģeru iela 7, Sarkandaugava). It highlights the contributions to Latvian culture made by this Latvian cultural patron and collector, who lives in Germany. With this exhibition, the Museum congratulates Gaidis Graudiņš on his milestone birthday, expressing gratitude for his interest, involvement, and financial support in the establishment of the Dauderi Museum, as well as for his many years of collaboration and the generous donations made to enhance the museum. Admission to Dauderi is free on this day.

Gaidis Graudiņš was born on 11 June 1926, in Kalnapakalnieši, Ranka Parish, Cēsis District. He attended the Ranka Elizabete (Rēveļi) Elementary School and later the Smiltene Agricultural Technical School. During his school years, he learned to play the piano and the accordion, traveled throughout Latvia, and took many photographs. His dreams for the future were cut short by World War II, as the 18-year-old was drafted into the Legion in May 1944. Initially, Graudiņš served in the anti-tank company of the 15th Division of the Latvian Legion, and later in Colonel Vilis Janums’ combat group.

Later, the young man ended up in Germany, where he lived in various filtration and refugee camps from 1945 to 1947. While working as a lumberjack at the Harz Mountains camp (in Braunschweig, Germany), he received an invitation to serve in a British Auxiliary Service guard unit, followed by training in an officer’s course. In 1948, when Graudiņš was just 22 years old, he became a platoon deputy commander, and in 1951, he became head of the training division of the General Staff. In 1959, he was hired by NATO’s civilian structure as an advisor on economic affairs; until 1987, he served as an advisor on land administration between NATO structures and German authorities. He studied law through distance learning.

His active participation in the social life of the Latvian diaspora, his interest in various developments, his sense of duty, his intelligence, his patriotism, and his love for his homeland have made Gaidis Graudiņš one of the most prominent social activists in the Latvian diaspora. He represents a generation that, while living outside Latvia, never lost its connection to the homeland and dedicated its life to maintaining Latvian identity and preserving cultural heritage for future generations. In 1997, his contribution to the preservation of Latvian culture was recognized with the First Class Medal of the Order of the Three Stars.

Gaidis Graudiņš began his career as a collector with books. Gradually, his range of interests expanded, and he increasingly focused on the deliberate acquisition of cultural and historical artifacts related to the history of the Latvian army and Latvian culture, and on building his collection. These artifacts were carefully gathered in collaboration with approximately 50 collectors in various countries around the world. He first displayed the collection at his home in Detmold, and later in Grete, naming it the “Latvian Museum.”

The Third Awakening in Latvia prompted the collector to bring his unique collection back to his homeland, in part to strengthen the national self-confidence of his compatriots. The patron himself found a suitable building—the villa “Waldschlösschen,” formerly owned by a brewery owner, which served as the summer residence “Dauderi” in Sarkandaugava for Latvian State and Prime Minister Kārlis Ulmanis from 1937 to 1940. On 24 February 1989, the State Committee for Culture of the Latvian SSR—represented by its chairman, Raimonds Pauls—and the donor of the collection, Gaidis Graudiņš, signed an agreement on the transfer of the collection to Latvia and its placement in the Dauderi building.

In 1990, at Graudiņš’ initiative and with his financial support, restoration of the Dauderi House began; the garden and the wider area around the building were also landscaped. The new museum, named the “Dauderi” Museum of Latvian Culture, was opened on 27 June of that same year during the XX Latvian Song Festival.

That is why the exhibition dedicated to the centenarian will open on 27 June. At 12:00 visitors will have the opportunity to listen to a museum specialist’s talk about Gaidis Graudiņš (in Latvian) and his contribution to the preservation of Latvia’s cultural heritage. It is worth noting that, in the early days of Latvia’s restored independence, this was the first donation of such magnitude to a cultural institution.

The exhibition features both photographs capturing significant moments in Gaidis Graudiņš life and previously unexhibited items from the museum’s collection, including those that tell the story of the collector’s activities in exile—his participation in the “Daugavas Vanagi” organization, the Song Festival, and more. Also on display will be folk costumes and a Latvian Army uniform from the interwar period from Gaida Graudiņš’ collection.

Since 2010, Dauderi has been a branch of the Latvian National Museum of History. The museum continues to preserve, research, and promote Gaidis Graudiņš’ donation—approximately 7,000 items, most of which are related to Latvia during the interwar period of the 20th century.

The exhibition “Gaidis Graudiņš – 100” will be on view at Dauderi until 30 August.