Libuše Niklová (''née'' Kyselaková) (1 April 1934 – 5 June 1981) was a Czech toy designer and national treasure. A world-renowned designer and innovator, she created over 230 original toys. Well-known are her rubber figurines, accordion animals, and inflatable toys. Her work is represented in museum collections around the world, including at the Musée des Arts décoratifs in Paris, the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

in New York, the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

in London, the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo, and the

Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague Founded in 1885, the Prague Museum of Decorative Arts () is housed in a Neo-Renaissance edifice built from 1897 to 1899 after the designs of architect Josef Schulz. It opened in 1900 with exhibitions on the first floor. The museum's rich colle ...

in Prague. In 2012, on the occasion of the annual Czech Grand Design Awards, she was the first female designer ever to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Life

Niklová was born on 1 April 1934 in

Zlín Zlín (in 1949–1989 Gottwaldov; ; ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 75,000 inhabitants. It is the seat of the Zlín Region and it lies on the Dřevnice River. It is known as an industrial centre. The development of the modern city ...

as Libuše Kyseláková. In the years 1949 to 1953, she studied, then a new field, the shaping of plastic materials at the Zdeněk Nejedlý State School of Applied Arts in Zlín and

Uherské Hradiště Uherské Hradiště (; ) is a town in the Zlín Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 25,000 inhabitants. The agglomeration with the two neighbouring towns of Staré Město (Uherské Hradiště District), Staré Město and Kunovice has over ...

. After graduating in 1954, she joined the Gumotex factory in

Břeclav Břeclav (; ) is a town in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 25,000 inhabitants. Located at the Czech-Austrian state border and near the Czech–Slovak state border, it is an important railway hub. Administrative divis ...

, where she worked until 1964. In 1958, she married the painter František Nikl, a high school classmate. In 1960, they had a son, the Czech painter, writer, and theater artist Petr Nikl, and in 1968 a daughter. In 1961, Niklová started working at Fatra Napajedla. During the course of her career, she obtained patents for nine inventions and three national industrial designs. She died on 5 June 1981, in Gottwaldov (Zlín).

Gumotex

At Gumotex Břeclav, where she worked after graduation, Niklová mainly designed squeaky rubber toys, primarily figures and animals. These were initially made from pressed and foam rubber, then from blown PVC, and in the 1960s, cast from PVC and hand-dyed with latex paints. She also created souvenir toys, including for the 2nd Czechoslovak Spartakiad or the Brno Fairs and Exhibitions.

Fatra

After the birth of her son Peter, Niklová worked at Fatra Napajedla, from 1961 to 1980. Among her most famous creations are a black accordion tomcat, a ram, and a crocodile. She also designed the packaging in which the unassembled toy, a construction kit, was sold. She also designed inflatable and squeaky toys for small children. From the 1970s, she began designing larger inflatable and sit-on toys that were lightweight and washable. The Horse, the Rhinoceros, the Caterpillar, the Giraffe, the Lion, and the Polar Bear were among the followers of the Buffalo, whose prototype was created in 1971. Serial production began in 1973.

Creations

Niklová created over 230 original toys, many of which were produced in many color variants. Rubber squeaky toys
for Gumotex Břeclav, 1954–1964 Niklová designed 62 rubber toys, most of them squeaky, with the exception of a few dolls that do not have a squeaker. Many of these toys were also produced in several color variants, hand-dyed with latex paints. She also designed a few toys as souvenirs, for example for the Spartakiad or Brno fairs and exhibitions. Rocking Rooster - rubber squeaking toy - design Libuše Niklová 1954 Gumotex Břeclav.jpg, Rocking rooster, 1954 Kitty with a ball - rubber squeaking toy - design Libuše Niklová 1956 Gumotex Břeclav.jpg, Kitty with a ball, 1956 Alík the dog - rubber squeaking toy - design Libuše Niklová 1956 Gumotex Břeclav.jpg, Alík the dog, 1956 Bunny - rubber squeaking toy - design Libuše Niklová 1956 Gumotex Břeclav.jpg, Bunny, 1956 Calf - rubber squeaking toy - design Libuše Niklová 1956 Gumotex Břeclav.jpg, Calf, 1956 Libuška - rubber (squeaking) toy - design Libuše Niklová 1957 Gumotex Břeclav.jpg, Libuška, 1957 Hanka later Zuzana - rubber squeaking toy - design Libuše Niklová 1958 Gumotex Břeclav.jpg, Hanka, 1958 Motorcyclist - rubber squeaking toy - design Libuše Niklová 1964 Gumotex Břeclav.jpg, Motorcyclist, 1964 Tamer - rubber squeaking toy - design Libuše Niklová 1964 Gumotex Břeclav.jpg, Tamer, 1964 Cosmonaut - rubber squeaking toy - design Libuše Niklová 1964 Gumotex Břeclav.jpg, Cosmonaut, 1964 Accordion toys
for Fatra Napajedla, 1963–1967 Niklová designed twelve accordion toys, ten animals, a baby, and a train called Toot-Toot. Líba the tomcat - accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1963 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Líba the tomcat, 1963 Rafan the dog - accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1965 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Rafan the dog, 1965 Tiger - accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1964 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Tiger, 1964 Panther - accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1964 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Panther, 1964 Lion - accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1964 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Lion, 1964 Fox - accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1964 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Fox, 1964 Crocodile - accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1964 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Crocodile, 1964 Ram - accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1965 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Ram, 1965 Goat - accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1965 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Goat, 1965 Donkey - accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1965 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Donkey, 1965 Baby - accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1964 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Baby, 1964 Toot-Toot the train- accordion, self assembly toy - design Libuše Niklová 1967 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Toot-Toot the train, 1967 Vernian toys
for Fatra Napajedla, 1966 Niklová designed three toys based on characters from

Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the ''Voyages extraor ...

novels:

Nautilus A nautilus (; ) is any of the various species within the cephalopod family Nautilidae. This is the sole extant family of the superfamily Nautilaceae and the suborder Nautilina. It comprises nine living species in two genera, the type genus, ty ...

Albatros An albatross is one of a family of large winged seabirds. Albatross or Albatros may also refer to: Animals * Albatross (butterfly) or ''Appias'', a genus of butterfly * Albatross (horse) (1968–1998), a Standardbred horse Literature * Albat ...

, and Epouvante. These were designed for

Expo 67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 28 to October 29, 1967. It was a category one world's fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most s ...

in Montreal, though they did not appear, as the

Communist government A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state in which the totality of the power belongs to a party adhering to some form of Marxism–Leninism, a branch of the communist ideology. Marxism–Leninism was ...

deemed them to be "too Western". They eventually went into production, though Epouvante remained only as a prototype and was never mass-produced. Albatros - hračka, stavebnice - navrženo pro Expo Montreal - design Libuše Niklová 1966 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Albatros, 1967 Nautilus - toy, kit - designed for Expo Montreal - design Libuše Niklová 1967 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Nautilus, 1967 Inflatable toys
for Fatra Napajedla, 1963–1980 Niklová designed 140 inflatable toys. They were both for playing in water and on land, and some could also be used as children's furniture or for hopping on. She also designed boats, sunbeds, water circles, or pools. Some of these toys produced sound. Buffalo small - inflatable sitting toy - design Libuše Niklová 1976 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Buffalo (small), 1976 Elephant calf - inflatable sitting toy - design Libuše Niklová 1975 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Elephant calf, 1975 Giraffe small - inflatable sitting toy - design Libuše Niklová 1975 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Giraffe (small), 1975 Donkey - inflatable toy - design Libuše Niklová 1975 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Donkey, 1975 Little Turtle - inflatable toy - design Libuše Niklová 1977 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Little Turtle, 1977 Blackie the Tomcat - inflatable toy - design Libuše Niklová 1967 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Blackie the Tomcat, 1967 Doggie - inflatable toy - design Libuše Niklová 1974 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Doggie, 1974 Little Sun - inflatable toy - design Libuše Niklová 1974 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Little Sun, 1974 Red Riding Hood - inflatable toy - design Libuše Niklová 1969 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Little Red Riding Hood, 1969 Masha - inflatable toy - design Libuše Niklová 1975 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Masha, 1975 Ice Hockey Player - inflatable toy - design Libuše Niklová 1976 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Ice hockey player, 1976 Fatran - nafukovací člun - design Libuše Niklová 1969 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Fatran, 1969 Arrow - inflatable lounger - design Libuše Niklová 1974 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Arrow, 1974 Butterfly decor - inflatable swimming ring - design Libuše Niklová 1970 Fatra Napajedla.jpg, Butterfly decor, 1970

Notable exhibitions

Niklová’s work has been featured in various exhibitions for over sixty years. How a tomcat travelled the world Libuse Niklova

* 200 dm3 dechu (200 dm3 of breath) – the Regional Gallery of Fine Arts in Zlín, House of Arts in Zlín, Czechia (2010) * 200 dm3 dechu (200 dm3 of breath) – the

, Czechia (2010) * Plastique ludique – the Musée des Arts Décoratifs at the Louvre, Paris, France (2011) * Paris et Création – Plastique ludique – the

Galeries Lafayette Galeries Lafayette () is an upmarket French department store chain, the biggest in Europe. Its flagship store is on Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris but it now operates a number of locations in France and other countries ...

in Paris, France (2011) * Century of the Child: Growing by Design, 1900–2000 – the

in New York, US (2012) * Designing Modern Women 1890–1990 – the Museum of Modern Art in New York, US 2013–2014 * 100 Years of Czech Design – the Okazaki Mindscape Museum, Okazaki City Museum of Art (Aichi) in Okazaki, Japan (2019) * 100 Years of Czech Design – the Toyama Prefectural Museum of Art and Design in Toyama, Japan (2019) * 100 Years of Czech Design – the

Setagaya Art Museum The is an art museum in Yōga, Setagaya, Tokyo. The museum, which opened March 30, 1986, houses a permanent gallery and mounts seasonal exhibitions. Structure The main building of the museum, a contemporary design by architect Shōzō Uchii, ...

in Tokyo, Japan (2019) * 100 Years of Czech Design – the

Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura & Hayama The is the first public modern art museum in Japan. The museum consists of three halls: Kamakura, Kamakura annex, and Hayama. Outline of halls Kamakura hall (main building) The hall is located in Yukinoshita, Kamakura, Kanagawa prefecture, ...

in Hayama, Japan (2020) * 100 Years of Czech Design – the National Museum of Modern Art in Kyoto, Japan (2020) * How a Tomcat Travelled the World: Libuše Niklová's Toys and Their Foreign Hybrids – the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague, Czechia

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Niklová, Libuše 1934 births 1981 deaths