Cabinet of Ministers Award 2016

On November 16, 2016, Prime Minister Māris Kučinskis and government ministers honored the recipients of the Cabinet of Ministers Award at the Lielais dzintars concert hall in Liepāja.

The award was presented to outstanding individuals who, through their selfless work, have strengthened their communities, the national economy, and the country as a whole. For her contribution to the development and international recognition of the Latvian National Museum of Art, the award was granted to the museum’s director, Māra Lāce.

Māra Lāce began her career at the museum in 1973 as a guide and is now the director of Latvia’s most significant visual arts institution, the Latvian National Museum of Art. Over time, she has held various museum roles, including curator of the graphics collection, chief collection keeper, and deputy director for research.

In 1989, Māra Lāce was appointed director of the State Art Museum, a division of the Latvian Museum Association. She was later confirmed as the director of the reorganized State Art Museum, which incorporated the ARSENĀLS Exhibition Hall. Today, under her leadership, the museum structure also includes Art Museum RIGA BOURSE, the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, and the Romans Suta and Aleksandra Beļcova Museum, which she helped establish.

Under Māra Lāce’s leadership, the Latvian National Museum of Art has not only documented, preserved, and promoted Latvia’s cultural heritage but has also actively engaged in identifying and evaluating contemporary achievements in Latvian professional visual arts. This has contributed to the dynamism of Latvia’s art scene, fostered new projects and original ideas, and promoted the creative successes of Latvian artists both locally and internationally.