with Sebastian Mühl (Zurich University of the Arts, Art Academy of Latvia), Víctor Muñoz Sanz (Technische Universiteit Delft), Jinřich Toman (University of Michigan), & Barbora Svobodová (Université Libre de Bruxelles)

A roundtable on Baťa narratives, values, and transnational representations organised within the framework of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions project "Literature - Industry - Society between Colonialism and Globalisation: The Role of Literature and the Corporate Press in the Global Activities of the Baťa Concern"

Far more than a successful business enterprise, the Baťa phenomenon shaped an entire vision of modern life. From the interwar town of Zlín to factory communities across Europe and beyond, Baťa created not only new forms of industrial organisation, but also distinctive ways of thinking, communicating, and imagining the modern world.

This seminar invites an interdisciplinary discussion on the cultural dimensions of the Baťa legacy – the values, narratives, and representational strategies through which the company constructed meaning within both local and global contexts. Baťa’s world can be viewed as a cultural model that combined specific modes of communication (slogans, mottos, in-house magazines) with its own narrative genres (travel writing, reports, adventure stories, and later memoirs).
The discussion will address both the internal company culture and the outward reach of Baťa’s international expansion – for instance in India, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Switzerland, where the company acted as an agent of cultural transfer.

Held as a roundtable working seminar, the event will provide a space to share ongoing research, discuss methodological approaches, and explore how the notion of “Baťa-ness” has evolved across time and contexts. Its aim is to connect researchers across disciplines and to encourage new forms of collaboration and exchange in the study of industrial modernity.

Programme

Thursday 13th November 2025, from 2pm until 6pm

Salle de réception
Building DE1 - Level 3 - Room R.3.105
Avenue Antoine Depage 1
1000 Bruxelles

Free entrance

Contact : barbora.svobodova@ulb.be