* personal profile:
A young boy who drew beautifully worked in the Zlín factory at the sawmill. His colleagues informed Dr. Gerbec, who was close to the boss himself. And so, it happened that the young man was called to Bata, who guaranteed him some kind of financial support so that he could study, and the seventeen-year-old Kobzáň went to study at an art school in Prague. When he was nearing the end of his studies, he created Bata's corporate header for his company. The lines of the new company symbol were clear, forceful, lapidary - just like Tomas Bata himself. Around 1925, the new Kobzáň brand became the face of the Bata company. Bata wanted to hire Kobzáň into the company, but the young artist never agreed, he did not want to be tied down. He continued to work for Bata, but only on individual orders. At the beginning of World War II, he worked as a teacher in Zlín and then moved to Jasenná. He died in 1959.
Tomas Bata through the eyes of Jan Kobzáň: Sympathetic, modest, not demanding with regard to personal needs. He could laugh better than others. Manly! His figure was somewhere between medium and normal height of a well-built person. He looked bigger than he was, he seemed like a big man. He also had a developed facial part. The body is quite slender, agile, but the movements are vigorous, unhurried. He looked graceful despite the square head.
Eyes blue, deep blue. He liked to listen to others, he waited to take part in conversation. He didn't ask for a school certificate either, he tested and got to know people based on their work and performance, readiness, but he was also happy to admit to mistakes and errors when they happened. And he always laughed.
Jan Kobzáň
