How Design Bridged Two Eras for One Special Czech Town

Deep in the eastern reaches of the Czech Republic lies a town that tells its entire story through architecture and design. Zlín, once a quiet Moravian settlement, became one of the most ambitious urban experiments of the 20th century — and in recent decades, design has become the thread connecting its industrial golden age to a vibrant contemporary identity. The result is a town where functionalist concrete walkways lead to modern galleries, and factory floors host cutting-edge design festivals.

The Baťa Blueprint: How a Shoe Empire Shaped a City

No understanding of Zlín makes sense without first understanding Tomáš Baťa. In 1894, Baťa took over his family’s modest shoe business and turned it into a global enterprise. But Baťa’s vision extended far beyond footwear. He wanted to build an entire city around his factory — a model industrial community where workers would live, learn, and thrive.

Beginning in the 1920s and accelerating through the 1930s, Baťa and a team of architects — most notably František Lýdia Gahura and Vladimír Karfík — transformed Zlín into a showcase of functionalist architecture and urban planning. The design principles were radical for their time: every building served a purpose, ornamentation was stripped away, and the city was organized around the needs of both industry and daily life.

The results were extraordinary. The Baťa Skyscraper, completed in 1938, became the tallest building in Czechoslovakia at the time and served as the company’s headquarters. The Baťa Hospital, designed by Karfík, introduced modern medical facility design. Rows of identical family houses, each with a garden, gave workers a standard of living far above the norm. A network of elevated walkways connected factory buildings, allowing workers to move between departments without stepping into the street.

By the late 1930s, Zlín was internationally recognized as a model of modern urbanism. Its grid layout, its use of standardization, and its integration of industrial and residential spaces drew comparisons to ideas being developed independently in the Bauhaus movement and by modernists like Le Corbusier.

War, Nationalization, and a Frozen Legacy

World War II disrupted Zlín’s trajectory. Tomáš Baťa died in a plane crash in 1932, and the family’s complicated relationship with both fascism and communism meant the town’s identity became politically charged after 1948. The communist nationalization of the Baťa company stripped the family name from the factories, and the town itself was renamed Gottwaldov after Klement Gottwald, the communist leader who had been born nearby.

During the communist era, the functionalist buildings remained but lost their original context. New construction in the 1960s and 1970s followed socialist realist and brutalist conventions, creating an odd architectural layer cake — Baťa modernism sandwiched between communist-era housing blocks and industrial facilities. The design DNA of the town was preserved in concrete and brick, but the visionary spirit behind it had been suppressed.

After the Velvet Revolution in 1989 and the town’s reversion to the name Zlín in 1990, residents faced a question that would define the next chapter: What do you do with a city that was built as a design experiment?

Rediscovery: Design as Heritage

Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, a slow but steady process of rediscovery took hold. Architects, historians, and local advocates began documenting the significance of Zlín’s functionalist heritage. The Baťa buildings were not just old factories and worker housing — they were internationally significant examples of early modernist urban planning.

The Baťa Institute, established to preserve and promote the town’s architectural legacy, became a key player in this renaissance. The organization cataloged buildings, advocated for preservation, and worked to raise awareness of Zlín’s unique position in architectural history. The former Baťa headquarters — the iconic skyscraper — was restored and repurposed as a cultural and administrative center, symbolizing the transition from industrial production to cultural production.

Restoration projects across the town took on a particular character. Rather than simply freezing buildings in their 1930s appearance, designers and preservationists chose to honor the original functionalist intent while adapting spaces for contemporary use. A factory became a gallery. A warehouse became a performance space. The principle of “form follows function” — the very idea that had driven Baťa’s architects — was applied again, this time to give old buildings new functions.

For a deeper look at how industrial spaces are being transformed across Central Europe, see our guide on adaptive reuse in post-industrial cities.

Zlín Design Week: Connecting Past and Present

Perhaps the most visible expression of this design bridge is Zlín Design Week, an annual event that has grown into one of the most respected design festivals in Central Europe. Launched in the 2010s, the festival deliberately stages exhibitions, installations, and workshops within the historic Baťa buildings, creating a dialogue between the town’s industrial past and contemporary design practice.

The festival has become a magnet for international designers, students, and enthusiasts. Exhibitions are held in former factory halls, along the elevated walkways, and in spaces that were once devoted to shoe manufacturing. The message is clear: design is not a static artifact but a continuous process, and Zlín is living proof of that continuity.

Visiting designers frequently remark on the unusual quality of exhibiting within functionalist architecture that was itself designed to be beautiful through pure purpose. There is no tension between the art and the space — both share the same philosophical DNA.

Tomas Bata University: Design Education in a Design City

The opening of Tomas Bata University in Zlín (founded in 2001) added another critical link in the chain between eras. The Faculty of Multimedia Communications, in particular, has become a significant center for design education, producing graduates who carry forward the town’s tradition of applied creativity.

The university has forged partnerships with international design schools and industry, ensuring that Zlín’s design culture is not an insular nostalgia project but an active, outward-looking enterprise. Students work on projects that reference Baťa’s principles of standardization, efficiency, and user-centered design while applying them to digital interfaces, sustainable materials, and contemporary product design.

Graduates of the program have founded studios and workshops throughout Zlín, creating a small but growing design ecosystem that adds economic and cultural weight to the town’s identity.

The UNESCO Question and International Recognition

For years, Zlín has pursued recognition from UNESCO for its modernist architectural heritage. The town has appeared on tentative lists, and advocacy efforts have gained momentum as global interest in 20th-century architectural preservation has grown. The case for Zlín is strong: the Baťa complex represents one of the most complete and coherent examples of early modernist urban planning anywhere in the world.

Whether or not formal UNESCO status materializes, the international attention has had a tangible effect. Architectural tourism has increased, bringing visitors who come specifically to walk the grid streets, tour the skyscraper, and experience the factory-to-gallery conversions firsthand. Design-focused hotels, cafés, and shops have opened in restored Baťa buildings, creating an experience economy layered on top of industrial heritage.

Related: For more on how heritage drives tourism economies, see our feature on cultural heritage tourism in Central Europe.

Lessons from Zlín: What Other Towns Can Learn

The Zlín story offers several transferable insights for other towns grappling with industrial heritage:

• Design is a living tradition, not a museum piece. Zlín succeeded because it treated its functionalist heritage as a foundation for new activity rather than a relic to be preserved behind glass.
• Adaptive reuse must respect original intent. The most successful building conversions in Zlín are those that honor the functionalist principle of purposeful design by giving buildings genuinely new purposes.
• Education and culture create sustainability. The university and the design festival ensure that Zlín’s design identity is continuously regenerated by new people and new ideas.
• Economic transformation follows cultural investment. The design-driven identity of Zlín has attracted tourism, creative businesses, and young professionals — diversifying an economy that once depended entirely on shoe manufacturing.

Conclusion

Zlín is more than a Czech town with interesting old buildings. It is a place where the radical design ideas of the 1930s — standardization, functionalism, user-centered planning — found physical expression in an entire city, and where those same ideas have been revived and reinterpreted for the 21st century. The bridge between these two eras was built, fittingly, through design itself: through adaptive reuse, education, cultural programming, and a community that understands its identity is inseparable from its built environment. For anyone interested in how architecture shapes culture across generations, Zlín remains one of the most compelling examples in Europe.

FAQ

What is Zlín, Czech Republic, known for?

Zlín is known for its extraordinary collection of functionalist architecture built by the Baťa shoe company in the 1920s and 1930s. The town’s grid layout, skyscraper, factory complexes, and worker housing represent one of the most complete examples of early modernist urban planning in the world.

Who designed the Baťa buildings in Zlín?

The primary architects were František Lýdia Gahura and Vladimír Karfík, who worked under the direction of Tomáš Baťa. They drew on functionalist and modernist principles to create a cohesive urban environment designed around industrial production and workers’ quality of life.

What is Zlín Design Week?

Zlín Design Week is an annual international design festival held in the town, typically staging exhibitions and events within the historic Baťa buildings. It has become one of the leading design festivals in Central Europe and plays a key role in connecting Zlín’s industrial heritage with contemporary design culture.

Can you visit the Baťa buildings in Zlín?

Yes, many of the Baťa buildings are open to the public or have been repurposed as cultural spaces, galleries, and offices. The Baťa Skyscraper houses the Baťa Institute, and architectural walking tours are available through local guides and tourism organizations.

Is Zlín a UNESCO World Heritage Site?

As of 2026, Zlín has been on tentative lists for UNESCO recognition for its modernist architectural heritage. Advocacy efforts continue, and the town has received growing international attention from architectural preservation organizations.