Museum of South East Moravia in Zlín
The Museum of South East Moravia in Zlín is a place where you can start discovering the Bata story. The Bata Principle exhibition offers the largest collection of shoes in Central Europe. You can learn about the work of Karel Zeman and Hermína Týrlová from the Zlín film studios, or visit the travel exhibition of famous travellers Hanzelka and Zikmund, displaying also the legendary silver Tatra 87.
Enter the world of Bata
The fascinating exhibition The Bata Principle: Today Fantasy, Tomorrow Reality will take you to Bata's Zlín, where even the craziest dreams were not impossible to reach. The video-mapping at the beginning of the exhibition presents the Bata Company from the first slippers made in 1894 through the war years to nationalisation. You will see what the shoemakers' workshops looked like when Tomas Bata was starting out, compared to the shoemaking machines that were once the beating heart of the factory and the city of Zlín. Photographs and documents show dozens of aspects of the Bata phenomenon, from shoe shops to education to aircraft production. What's definitely worth seeing is the huge collection of shoes from all over the world, including delicate shoes from China or feather and hair shoes imported from Australia.
Take a picture with Tatra 87 H+Z
A large part of the exhibition consists of objects imported from the exciting journeys of Jiří Hanzelka and Miroslav Zikmund, who settled in Zlín after returning from their first trip. A beautiful Tatra 87 reminding us of the fact that Hanzelka and Zikmund (H+Z) were the first in the world to drive across Africa from north to south, including the dangerous Nubian desert. But you can learn also about the other travellers, such as Eduard Ingriš, author of the famous campfire song The Wistful Roar of the Niagara.
From Zlín to the world of film
Film studios were an important part of Bata's Zlín. The studios were originally created for the needs of the advertising department of the Bata Company. The “small Hollywood” on a hill called Kudlov became a place where Elmar Klos, Alexander Hackenschmied, Hermína Týrlová and Karel Zeman filmed. Thanks to this, the oldest film festival of its kind in the world – the Zlín Film Festival – was created in Zlín. You can learn about the film history of Zlín in The Bata Principle exhibition: for the youngest visitors there are characters from the films: A Journey to the Beginning of Time (Cesta do pravěku), Ferda the Ant (Ferda Mravenec), Invention for Destruction (Vynález zkázy) or The Rats (Krysáci), whereas older visitors can learn about the filmmakers.
Our tip
Take a virtual tour of the exhibition The Bata Principle: Today Fantasy, Tomorrow Reality.
Where next
- The Museum of South East Moravia organises guided tours of the Bata Skyscraper including a ride in the original elevator office of Jan A. Bata. Make sure to book the tour in advance.
- Don't miss the wide range of short-term exhibitions, events and educational programmes.
- The Zlín Museum also manages the complex on Ploština with its brand new exhibitions Tragedy at Ploština and New Ploština, commemorating the events of the burning of the small settlement by the Nazis. The Museum of the Luhačovice Zálesí presents the history of the spa industry and the region, while Malenovice Castle takes you through seven centuries on guided tours and in a series of exhibitions, displays and programmes.
- Do you want to discover the place where a world-famous traveller lived and worked? Take a tour of Zikmund's Villa. You will find the whole world there.
