The museum collection of paintings and graphics is not large; however, it includes the works of some outstanding artists of the early 20th century like Janis Rozentāls, Bernhard Borchert, Kārlis Brencēns and others. A home interior of the 1900s cannot be imagined without them, and they account for a positive atmosphere in the museum exposition.
The museum collection contains two works by Bernhard Borchert characterising his creative approach. The watercolour Spring (around 1900) resembles works of Symbolist painters, i.e. a mythological narrative unfolds within a Latvian environment. Borchert was considered to be the best pastel painter before WWI and it is proved by his second work – the pastel Spring Magic. In the centre of the painting there are two naked young people on the background of blooming apple trees. Janis Rozentāls, the founder of the Latvian national school of painting, is represented by his drawing Lāčplēsis’ Fight with the Multi-headed Devil (1908) and several other works. These are sketches and drafts of oil paintings which show that the painter was a skilful drawer. One of the most expressive works is a portrait of his wife Ellija. Painter Kārlis Brencēns painted his watercolour A Woman in Paris, and it shows the influence of the French school of art. The museum collection also includes several works by Jūlijs Straume, a master of applied arts, e.g. the watercolour Paris painted in 1906 which depicts the Trocadero, and several of his plant drawings. The portrait The Sitting Woman painted by Ljubova Sonja Grimm in the Impressionist manner is an excellent artwork of Art Nouveau. There is also the pastel The Alps Scenery (1916) by Kārlis Metuzāls who used to be Borchert’s pupil. While living in Switzerland, the painter had made friends with Rainis and Aspazija, and this scenery might have been painted near Lugano.
The work still continues on supplementing the museum collection with the works of Art Nouveau artists.
