Exploring the Use of Water in Ancient Gardens: A Journey through Fountains, Crafts, and Music

Throughout the day, in various activities, it will be possible to learn more about the use of water in the ancient gardens, as well as to play with water, dropping ship models and paper boats into the pool, or creating a “river of colors” together with the artist Kristini Kutepova using a special color floating technique, which will become the singers of the stage decorations in the evening Aija Vītoliņa’s concert Rose and water.

During the festivities, a five-meter high virtual fountain will be located near the mirror pond, which is one of the characteristic elements of the Baroque garden, which will allow visitors to observe the world’s oldest and most important fountains and learn how ancient gardens were irrigated. The virtual fountain was created by museum specialists in cooperation with video artist Tomas Zeļgi.

The celebrations will be enriched with miracles and surprises by the performances and master classes of the Riga Circus School, while the musical poetry program of actress Raimondas Vazdikas and musician Mika Galvanovskis will be performed in the garden in a quiet atmosphere. Water gardens.

There will also be a traditional holiday market, where you can buy plants of roses, perennials, ornamental shrubs and herbs, garden products, handicrafts and various delicacies – home-baked bread, smoked meats, caramels, cookies and almonds in glaze, various types of ice cream and, possibly, even in the Bauska region cultivated apricots.

The garden festival program has been created by the director Kārlis Anitens and will talk with the visitors throughout the day.

Water has always been important in gardens, both for purely practical and aesthetic reasons. In Renaissance and Baroque gardens, fountains, cascades and waterfalls were designed in such a way that the water creates sounds similar to birdsong, the rustling of the wind or other sounds of nature. Baroque gardens are characterized by mirror ponds and mirror pools. They picturesquely complement the ensemble of the palace and the garden, creating specially thought-out compositions of views and highlighting even more the beauty of the palace or some garden elements in the reflections.