THE SOUL OF RIGA

Fragment of a Shattered World

History & Facts
This photograph captures shattered safety glass, forming a dense web of lines that refracts the city into many small fragments. Seen from the rooftop of Riga Plaza toward the Reval Hotel side, the broken surface turns the skyline into a distorted mosaic — a visual metaphor for fragility and the way perception can split and rearrange reality.

Interesting Fact
Riga’s rooftops are a quiet “second city” above the streets: in the center you’ll see steep historic metal and tile roofs shaped by harsh winters, while along the Daugava modern glass-and-steel towers rise into a newer skyline. From high points like Riga Plaza, these layers stack together — Old Riga spires, 20th-century blocks, and contemporary high-rises — giving one of the clearest reads of how the city has grown over time.

Author’s Note
I captured this frame because the broken glass became a window to another world — not clear, but fractured and strangely beautiful. The city appears both familiar and transformed, as if each shard holds its own version of Riga.