Inese Sirica, Dr. art., Head of the Faculty of Art Science, Associate Professor, Art Academy of Latvia, leader of the research group in the National Research Programme “Latvian Culture – a Resource for National Development 2020–2022”

In: Latvian Academy of Sciences Yearbook 2021, 2021, pp. 54-64.

“Jūlijs Madernieks (1870–1955) is a unique personality in the history of Latvian art, who has purposefully dedicated his life to the creation of original sample compositions of applied art, which today can surely be called “the style of Madernieks”. He has also been called the first Latvian designer. An innovator, since in his original compositions he combined Latvian ethnography, the mythically fabulous local nature, visualisation of his lyrically musical feelings in ornament and the latest findings in the art of his time. Madernieks’ ornaments might be interesting and “understandable” to nowadays mathematicians and programmers.”

Read the whole article here (pdf).

Madernieks' design of a fabric pattern (1920s. Paper, watercolour, Indian ink. 26.6×24.5 cm. Collection of the Latvian National Museum of Art, acquired in 1932) is used on the front and back cover of the LAS Yearbook 2021.