Brederlo Rooms
The exhibition can be seen on the 4th floor of the museum and offers a selection of paintings that give an insight into the extensive art collection of Friedrich Wilhelm Brederlo.
Friedrich Wilhelm Brederlo (1779–1862) was one of the most prominent figures in 19th-century Baltic cultural life. He proved himself as a talented wine merchant and a distinguished leader in political and social life, holding the position of Elder of the Grand Guild, Riga Town Ratmann and Chairman of the Riga Stock Exchange Committee. Nevertheless it was his passion for art collecting and patronage that secured Brederlo’s notable place in cultural history. His collection of paintings, which forms the “golden fund” of the Art Museum Riga Bourse, has been in Riga for almost two centuries and is one of the best in the Baltics, thanks to Brederlo’s taste and knowledge as an art connoisseur.
Art collecting was not just a passion of Friedrich Wilhelm Brederlo but a widespread activity among Baltic intellectuals, with aesthetic and social significance. His father, Johan David Brederlo, Duke of Courland Peter Byron’s wine steward, and his maternal grandfather, Johann Gottlieb Groschke, Duke Peter’s personal physician, also collected art. However, Friedrich Wilhelm Brederlo’s collection marked a new stage in the appreciation and aesthetics of works of art.
The Brederlo collection, unlike his ancestors’ tradition of “kunstkammer” or “curiosity cabinets”, was oriented towards the aesthetic enjoyment of art and not just en route to exploring the world. The choice of each work of art in his collection was based not only on the importance of the artist’s name but also on the collector’s own taste.
Brederlo’s art collection was situated in his house on Mazā Grēcinieku Street 1, where it was open to the public in eight rooms. The works were grouped according to country, chronology and spatial logic, creating the first art gallery in Riga, which also served as an inspiration for the city’s picture gallery.
This exhibition is not an attempt to recreate Brederlo’s original rooms but offers a more personal view of him as a collector of 19th-century contemporary art. The first room is a selection of works that have a personal and emotional connection to the collector himself. The second room is a display of works whose manner and subject matter resonated with Brederlo’s taste. The works once again suggest the subjective judgement of each collector and the relentless changes in art fashion trends. The third room shows Baltic German and German artists known to the collector and whose talents he respected and supported.
We invite you also to see works from the Brederlo collection in the permanent exhibition of the museum in the European Art Gallery.
