In order to draw attention to the fact that Riga lacks professional exhibition premises, the museum of the Artists’ Union of Latvia organised an action “Art Space” within the framework of Art Days in 2003. All the participants of the action – each artist, curator, art historian sent a letter to Ingūna Rībena, the Minister of Culture of the Republic of Latvia, and Gundars Bojārs, the Riga City Mayor, where they expressed their proposals how to settle this situation. As a result of both this art action and previous efforts on the initiative of the Deputy Sarmīte Pīka on September 9, 2003 the Committee of Culture, Art and Religion Affairs of the Riga City Council started a project on Riga City exhibition hall development in the underground space of the Town Hall Square.  

On September 9, 2003 the Department of Culture of the Riga City Council developed a Riga City Exhibition Hall initiative group. Professionals of various art and culture institutions were invited to work alongside with officials and deputies of the Riga City Council.

On November 11, 2003 the Riga City Council with Decision No. 2638 formed a work group for the development of Riga City Exhibition Hall. Its task was to start making an exhibition hall project. During 2004 and 2005 “BM&DR” Ltd. under the supervision of the architect Andis Kalniņš did planning works of the underground premises of the Town Hall Square. Construction works to adjust the premises for exhibition processes began in 2007.

At the beginning of 2007 the Riga City Council created a Riga municipality agency “Rīgas kultūras aģentūra” (Riga Culture Agency) with an aim to ensure the diversity and accessibility of cultural occurrences and the purposeful use of cultural heritage in the city. Three culture institutions of strategic Europeanwise importance work under this agency, namely, the cinema “Riga”, “Jūgendstila centrs” (Art Nouveau Centre) and the Riga City Exhibition Hall “Riga Art Space”.

At the beginning of 2007 in an open competition the curator and historian Ieva Kulokova was elected to be a creative director of the Riga City Exhibition Hall “Riga Art Space”, who currently works as a project manager of the Riga City Exhibition Hall.

The official opening of Riga Art Space took place on January 17, 2008. Several appreciated art projects have already been organised under the exhibition hall project, including such as “Emergency Biennale”, actions “Conversation” and “I-Tag”, and a solo exhibition of the painter Miķelis Fišers.
 

Since october, 2008 the curator and art historian Inese Baranovska is the creative director of Riga Art Space.

Riga Art Space shows itself to be a significant culture facility in the territory of the Baltic States with a professional team, exposition premises and technical equipment.