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Digitization of the Josef Svoboda Archive

Josef Svoboda created more than 700 theatrical and opera productions and kept a detailed archive of his work for many years. He documented the productions he worked on in high-quality photographs on slides, and collected technical documents (ground plans, technical specifications, models) and other materials (scripts, notes, reviews etc.).

After Svoboda’s death, his archive remained at his home and his family have continually encountered lively interest in the scenographer’s life and work. Students, teachers, stage designers and members of the general public are increasingly asking for more detailed information about Svoboda. Requests are coming in both from the Czech Republic and from the local theatrical community. The project of digitizing the scenographer’s extensive archive, which began in 2013, is one of the crucial steps in maintaining Svoboda’s legacy. Its aim is to provide gradual access to Svoboda’s work for study purposes – both for academics and the general public.

SVOBODAYS

are professional meetings organized by European theater institutions and schools on the initiative of Ms. Christine Richier, Professor of Lighting Design at ENSATT Lyon.

It was last held in Madrid in December 2019.

SVOBODAYS
https://www.svobodays.org/

Other services provided by the organization

  • advisory/consultancy services
  • publishing and editing for the press and audio-visual media
  • exhibitions
  • cultural events
  • educational activities – organizing workshops and seminars, publishing information and educational materials
  • advertising and marketing

Previous activities

  1. 2013 relocation to new premises
  2. 2012 activities resumed; financial support for the project of digitizing the Svoboda Archive requested from the Czech Ministry of Culture
  3. 2011 activities disrupted as a consequence of the Laterna Magika Theatre’s loss of autonomy
  4. 2010 collaboration on the preparation of the exhibition Josef Svoboda, Robert Wilson: Světlo (Light Up the Lights), Museum Kampa, Prague
  5. 2009 close collaboration on the documentary film Theatre Svoboda; providing facilities and specialists responsible for archival research; digitization and transcription of J. Burian’s archival materials (audiotapes); international networking; collaboration with the production company Endorfilm during filming.
  6. 2008 preparations for the exhibition Josef Svoboda’s Dynamic Space – Museum Kampa, 2008, unrealized
  7. 2007–2008 preliminary research and preparations for Jakub Hejna’s documentary film Theatre Svoboda
  8. 2006 transfer and archiving of posthumous papers left by Jarka Burian, a leading American scholar on Svoboda’s work
  9. 2006 project for the organization of the Josef Svoboda Archive in collaboration with the Theatre Institute in Prague
  10. 2006 exhibition Josef Svoboda – Sketches and Paintings, Bruntál