Background
Eižens Laube is born in Riga as a son of a potter.
Eižens Laube is born in Riga as a son of a potter.
In 1899 he graduated Realschule and started architecture studies in Riga Polytechnic Institute. Laube graduated from the Riga Polytechnic Institute"s department of in 1907.
He was responsible for some of the reconstruction work of Riga Castle in the 1930s and designed more than 200 houses in Riga. While still a student he started to work in Konstantīns Pēkšēns architecture office in 1900. Soon after he established his own architect"s office in Riga.
He also became lecturer in Riga Polytechnic Institute.
In 1909 he traveled to Sweden and Germany to improve his professional abilities. In 1910 he took identical trip to France.
From 1909 to 1914 he was the official adviser to the Commission for Artistic Issues in, in Riga. After First World War started in 1915 Laube together with Riga Polytechnic Institute was evacuated to Moscow.
He returned to Riga in 1917.
He was elected professor in 1920. In 1922 he briefly became rector of the University. He was also chairman of the Latvian Architects Society (1924-1926).
In 1930ties he again became dean of Faculty of In 1938 he participated in establishment of first latvian professional architectural magazine Latvijas Architektūra.
After Occupation of Latvia in 1940 he was dismissed from all posts but was not physically repressed. In 1944 he emigrated to Germany where he worked as Professor of at the Baltic University, Pinneberg, near Hamburg.
From 1950 he lived in the Olympia, Washington United States of America where he worked in architecture office. Since 1955 he lived in Portland.
He devoted his last years to writing and died in July 21, 1967 in Portland.
Before World War I Laube was one of the pioneers of Riga Art Nouveau movement, notably the lavishly decorated apartment building at 23 Tallinas Street 1901 together with Pēkšēns. His best-known works are in the National Romantic version of the style. He mainly used natural materials, different-colored bricks, local varieties of stone, metal, wood.
Laube building ornaments were typically flower and geometric motifs, and his buildings were usually directed upwards in a vertical shape.
In 1904 he took a study trip to Finland where he was introduced with national romanticism in architecture.
In 1919 he became one of the founding members of University of Latvia and became dean of Faculty of.