The Zlin Design Week Conference in a new online format is coming soon! In addition to 7 inspiring videos (20 minutes long), you can also look forward to another 6 speakers from the Czech Republic and Slovakia in podcasts. They will offer an in-depth insight into how they perceive the cooperation of design and marketing, what their experiences are and how the topic affects their work. The podcasts will be published between May 8 and 14, 2021 on our social media and website.
However we’ve already asked them one off-topic question for you which may partly compensate for meeting them by the bar during the afterparty. Keep on reading and find out what book was crucial in their life and why did it remain in their memory?
Ctirad Sára
Entrepreneur
“The Little Prince – For its humanity and truthfulness, for me it’s a book for adults rather than one for children.”
Marek Weidlich
Automotive & Industrial designer
“Fahrenheit 451. As a designer, I like fiction, science fiction, which tries to predict the future to some extent. So I enjoy observing the shifts in the world’s development, which were described in the book, and what the world looks like today. Fahrenheit 451 is an incredibly timeless work that, at the time of its publication in 1953, described fiction that is slowly becoming a reality today. We’re not exactly where Montag was yet, but we’re getting damn fast there.”
Marvan Shamma
Innovative tech leader
“One of the best that I always carry with me: The Mastery by Robert Greene. It absolutely wonderfully describes that talent doesn’t matter at all – that success and happiness are a matter of courage, discipline and good habits. 🙂 It may sound too childish, but I still recommend it everywhere I go, especially at my workshops and seminars. ”
Dana Prekopová
Owner of IOKO optics
“It is difficult for me to decide to give one book an exceptional position. There were several of them who entered my life and left their indelible mark. However, on this occasion, I would like to take this opportunity to mention two very nice and “slim” books with extremely strong stories by Alessandro Baricco. Silk and Novecento. I have returned to each of them repeatedly, they can be read in one session, which is a great advantage in my life, full of all kinds of activities. But in general, I like books with a strong story, where overcoming one’s own limits is oftentimes on the verge of endurance. I am fascinated by how strong faith in one’s ability can be.”
Vrtiška a Žák
Product designers
Roman Vrtiška:
“If we are talking about books related to my profession, then Less and More: The Design Ethos of Dieter Rams is crucial for me. A comprehensive publication on the work of a minimalist genius, whose designs essentially defined the Braun brand and its identity in three decades (from the fifties to the seventies), but also the aesthetics of Apple products during the time of John Ivan as its chief designer.
As far as fiction is concerned, it is clearly the classic – The Cremator by Ladislav Fuks.”
Vladimír Žák:
“1984 by George Orwell. It is a fundamental and true book for me, which, despite its age, remains relevant even today and can awaken the reader from a naive stage to a harsh reality. In fact, I’m almost sorry that it’s perhaps more relevant today than it was at the time of its publication. Otherwise, I am currently reading the book Hotel Praha by Bigboss, which I can only recommend to everyone because brutalism is not just a visual style, but a much broader context than it might seem. ”
More info about studio Vrtiška and Žák here.
Jakub Ptačín
Designer and marketing specialist
“This changes at different stages of my life and therefore it is not only one book. For example, It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want To Be by Paul Arden, but also Irvin’s A Guide to the Good Life – and most recently Thinking Course by Edward De Bono. However, in my book 53 Attempts How To Be Better, I mention another 50 book tips you should definitely buy that one and you will find more book tips there. :)”
