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Tomáš Bata Memorial in Zlín

Stručná odpověď

The Tomáš Baťa Memorial in Zlín was designed by architect F. L. Gahura and built in 1933 in the functionalist style. After wartime damage and decades as an Art House, it was restored to its original form and renamed in 2013. The interior features a model of the Junkers F13 aircraft in which Baťa died.



Tomáš Baťa Memorial in Zlín

The building was constructed in 1933, a year after Tomáš Baťa’s death. The memorial was built in the spirit of Zlín functionalism and was designed by the prominent Zlín architect F. L. Gahura. The classic structural module was combined with glass infill, whilst the interior hall space is divided only by columns and complemented by a single-arm staircase, achieving extraordinary spatial purity. It ceased to serve its purpose in November 1944, when the glass cladding was severely damaged during wartime bombing.

In 1954, the Memorial was converted into an Art House. During the process of restoring the Memorial to its original appearance, builders removed everything that did not evoke the 1930s. The unique building was thus restored to its pure crystal-like form. In 2013, the building was given back its name Tomáš Baťa Memorial. The interior is dominated by a model of the Junkers F13 aircraft in which Tomáš Baťa perished. The building towers at the top of T. G. Masaryk Square, offering beautiful views over Zlín. On visitor days, this Zlín jewel is also illuminated in the evening hours.

Tomáš Baťa

He enabled people to secure stable and well-paid employment. He dedicated his life to the production and sale of footwear. In 1923, he became mayor of Zlín, which marked the beginning of rapid urban development with financial support from the Baťa company. A hospital was built, land was purchased for the town. He transformed the castle building and its surroundings into public gardens. He secured accommodation for his employees in the distinctive Baťa houses that are so typical today. The costs of modernising Zlín were covered from his company’s own revenues.

His ideas were not confined to Zlín alone. He offered to install 3,000 telephones for villages without telephone service throughout Czechoslovakia. One of his greatest achievements was the establishment of an airport. He breathed life into film studios, hotels, school buildings and department stores. During this period, Zlín acquired the unique European character of a functionalist city. Even after his death, the development of the city continued, thanks to the capable people around him. This was particularly his half-brother and heir Jan Antonín Baťa.

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