The ABC of culture
LTV “Kultūrdevas” ABC explains the significant history and significance of Latvian cultural facts.
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All this was possible thanks to the Latvian interwar quality school and the old masters, who had passed on their knowledge to the next generation. The factory “Rīgas audums” produced high-quality and even Soviet-era exclusive fabrics, “Latvijas sewing factory” garments the entire Soviet Union, but the fashion shows organized by “Rīgas Modelļu nama” were written by Imants Ziedonis and played by maestro Raimonds Pauls. However, things were not so simple, because the employees of clothing companies were subjected to strict norms, looking for opportunities to circumvent and violate the restrictions set by the management.
Of course, the magazine “Rīgas Modes”, which was the Soviet equivalent of the American “Vogue”, played a huge role in maintaining the status of the Riga fashion metropolis. The magazine started to be published in the Latvian state publishing house (later – the publishing house “Liesma”) in 1949, applying for the first issue as a “helper for families and tailors’ workshops to design clothes neatly”. Here you could find out all about what skirt length, colors, decorative elements or accessories will be popular next season. Unfortunately, the costumes in the magazine mostly had to be enjoyed only with the eyes, as they could rarely be found on the shelves of Soviet stores. The Soviet man, who wanted to be a little different from other Soviet people, had to be creative – inspired by what he saw in the magazine, he had to turn an old coat into a modern jacket or shorten a long skirt into flirty “tinsel”. “Rīgas modes” was published in Latvian and Russian four times a year, with a circulation of 220 thousand copies.
Photo: Shot from the program “Kultūrdeva”
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In 1965, the magazine was taken over from the publishing house “Liesma” by “Rīgas Modelļu nams”. If until now all the costumes in the magazine had been drawn, then now real photos appeared in the magazine, in which the role of photo models was entrusted to the costume demonstrators of the “Riga Model House”. The photos in the magazine had to be very high resolution, allowing readers to explore the finest button on the costume, but unfortunately this goal was difficult to achieve with Soviet-era photography. The magazine’s photo models became celebrities throughout the Soviet Union, including actresses Regīna Razuma and Maija Ķirse, but also children’s famous fashion critic Dita Rietuma and painter Dace Lielā. Along with “Rīgas modēm” there was a special children’s graduation and edition for knitters – “Adīsim”. All issues of the magazine also had an appendix containing the biggest treasure itself – trimmings and tips for sewing, crocheting and other handicrafts.
The older generation of Rigans still say “Let’s meet at” Riga Fashion! “, Meaning the building at 49/53 Brivibas Street. People stood in long queues to order the clothes they wanted in. The magazine “Rīgas modes” stopped operating only in 1993, when Latvia regained its independence and the economic system changed.
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