Zlín
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| Statistics | |
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| Area: | 118,85 km² |
| Population: | 78,599 (2005) |
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Zlín (named Gottwaldov during 1949–90) is a city in Zlínský kraj (region), in southeastern Moravia, Czech Republic, on the Drevnice River, at . The development of the city is closely connected to the Bata shoe company. Due to Bata's managerial excellence Zlín became famous for the company's extraordinary social scheme developed after the First World War and its modernist urbanism.
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[edit] History of Zlín
[edit] Early History of Zlín
The first written record of Zlín dates back to 1332. Zlín became town in 1397.
[edit] Zlín and Tomáš Baťa (1894-1932)
The town grew rapidly after Tomáš Baťa founded a shoe factory there in 1894 (~3,000 inhabitants). Baťa's factory came to supply the Austro-Hungarian army in World War I. Given the remarkable economic growth of the company and increasing well-being of its workers, Baťa himself was elected the mayor of Zlin in 1923. Baťa designed the town as he saw fit until his death in 1932 (~35,000 inhabitants!). Baťa involved the best architects to build up a modern city, still one of the best examples of constructivism.
[edit] Zlín and Jan A. Baťa (1932-1939)
His son Thomas was forced to leave by the Nazis in 1939 and again after the war when the Baťa company was nationalized. (He left for Canada where he founded another model community, named Batawa).
[edit] Expansion of the Company and the City
As a result of the Great Depression many have predicted an early end to Baťa’s economic success. Yet, the company expanded even more rapidly. Zlín became the center of a fast growing international company, a place where its global business strategy was set and managed there. The Batamen (as Baťa’s foreign workers were called) worked across the globe. The city became the centre for activities ranging from Malaysia, where caoutchouc rubber was bought; through India where, in the city of Batanagar, a shoe factory was constructed; to Argentine from where hides were imported. New shoe factories were founded abroad, among the most important "Zlín satellites" (as they were called) were:
- Möhlin (in Switzerland in 1932)
- Hellocourt (France, 1932)
- Tilbury (England, 1933), see also the historical project Bata Memories
- Best (The Netherlands, 1933)
- Belcamp (USA, 1936).
- Batanagar (India)
All these new projects were being managed along with steady growth of the number of Baťa’s employees based in Zlín. When a Czechoslovak communist senator announced in a 1932 speech called "Moscow or Zlín?" that Baťa (as a prototypical capitalist symbol) would go bankrupt in few years, he could not be further from truth.
[edit] Postwar Era
Zlín was merged in 1948 with several surrounding communities to form Gottwaldov, named after the first communist president of Czechoslovakia, Klement Gottwald. In 1990 the whole city was renamed Zlín.
[edit] Architecture in Zlín
[edit] Urban Utopia
The astonishing feature of the city’s architectural development was a characteristic synthesis of two modernist urban utopian visions: the first inspired by Ebenezer Howard’s Garden city movement and the second tracing its lineage to Le Corbusier’s vision of urban modernity. From the very beginning Baťa pursued the goal of constructing the Garden City proposed by Ebenezer Howard. However, the shape of the city had to be ‘modernized’ so as to suit the needs of the company and of the expanding community. Zlín’s distinctive architecture was guided by principles that were strictly observed during its whole inter-war development. Its central theme was the derivation of all architectural elements from the factory buildings. The central position of the industrial production in the life of all Zlín inhabitants was to be highlighted. Hence the same building materials (red bricks, glass, reinforced concrete) were used for the construction of all public (and most private) edifices. The common structural element of Zlín architecture is a square bay of 20x20 feet (6.15x6.15 m). Although modified by several variations, this high modernist style leads to a high degree of uniformity of all buildings. It highlights the central and unique idea of an industrial garden city at the same time. Architectural and urban functionalism was to serve the demands of a modern city. The simplicity of its buildings which also translated into its functional adaptability was to prescribe (and also react to) the needs of everyday life.
The urban plan of Zlín was the creation of František Lydie Gahura, a student at Le Corbusier’s atelier in Paris. Le Corbusier’s inspiration was evident in the basic principles of the city’s architecture. On his visit to Zlín in 1935, where he was appointed to preside over the selective procedure for new apartment houses. Le Corbusier also received a commission for creating the plan for further expansion of the city and the company. His plan represented a paradigm shift from his earlier conceptions of urban design. Here he abandoned an anthropomorphic, centralized city model in favor of the linear city format. The change in Le Corbusier’s thinking was also reflected by the abandonment of the à redents residential pattern in favor of free-standing slab blocks. His Zlín plan, however, was never fully adopted.
[edit] Architectural Highlights
- The Villa of Tomáš Baťa was an early architectural achievement in Zlín (the construction was finished in 1911). The building’s design was carried out by the famous Czech architect Jan Kotěra, professor at Prague's Academy of Fine Arts. After its confiscation in 1945 the building served as a Pioneers’ house. Being returned to Tomáš J. Baťa, the son of the company’s founder, the building houses the headquarters of the Thomas Bata Foundation.
- Baťa’s Hospital in Zlín was originally founded in 1927 and quickly developed into one of the most modern Czechoslovak hospitals. The original architectural set up was designed by František Lydie Gahura.
- The Grand Cinema (Velké kino) was built in 1932 and became the largest cinema in Europe (2580 seated viewers) in its time. The cinema also boasted the largest movie screen in Europe (9 x 7 meters). This technological marvel was designed by the Czech architects Miroslav Lorenc (1896-1943) and František Lydie Gahura (1896-1958).
- The Monument of Tomáš Baťa was built in 1933 by František Lydie Gahura. The original purpose of the building was to commemorate the achievements of Baťa before his unexpected death in a plane crash in 1932. The building itself is a constructivist masterpiece. It has served as the seat of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Bohuslava Martinů since 1955.
- The Baťa’s Skyscraper (Baťův mrakodrap, Jednadvacítka) was finished in 1938 and became the company‘s headquarters. This tallest Czechoslovak building (77.5 meters) was designed by architect Vladimír Karfík. The building has recently undergone an expensive renovation and is currently the headquarters of the Zlín Regional Government.
[edit] Education
[edit] Trivia
- The Playwright Tom Stoppard was born Tomas Straussler in Zlín in 1937 where his father Eugene - Evžen - was a physician under the forward-looking Bata doctor, Bohuslav Albert. The Strausslers left for Singapore in 1939.
- Ivana Trump - Donald Trump's ex wife - was born in Zlín
- The Broadcaster Sir John Tusa was born in Zlin in 1936 where his fatherwas a company executive. In 1939 the family came to England where his father became the Managing Director of Bata's East Tilbury factory,
[edit] External links
- Official website
- Bata Memories is a project about the history of the Bata Shoes company and its former employees in East Tilbury, England
[edit] References
Frampton, Kenneth, 2001. Le Corbusier. London and New York: Thames and & Hudson World of Art.
Meller, Helen, 2001. European Cities 1890-1930s. History Culture and the Built Environment. Chichester (UK): John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
