Simona Rybáková

Biography

Born in 1963 in Prague, Czech Republic.

She has graduated from the High School of Art and Design and got her Master degree in textile design from the University of Applied Arts in Prague. Part of her training was studying textile design for several months at the University of Applied Arts Helsinki, as well. In 2014 she defended her doctoral dissertation focusing in temporary costume design and she obtain PhD. degree.
In 1995 she has received the Swarowski award. The prize covered four months residency in Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, USA. Since 1996 she is the Czech representative in OISTAT Executive Committee and OISTAT Scenography Committee (OISTAT – International Organization of Scenographers, Theatre Architect and Technicians). In 2015 she was elected as Head of Costume working group OISTAT. She is also active in Critical Costume conference Steering group. Since 2007 she is a member of the European Film Academy and since 2014 member of Czech Film and Television Academy.
After she has completed her studies she has started working as a freelance designer, first in textile and later in costume design as well. Thanks to the wide scope of education in that field and experiences from her own dance and theatre group, she had a possibility to work in many different fields of costume and clothes design, and has combine the influences.
A lot of her work in theatre and other performance projects is connected to the work of Caban brothers, in whose work costume design was always an important element. She often collaborates with duo D. Dvořák – J. Nekvasil – for The Opera Mozart, State Opera and the National Theatre Prague, Brno and Ostrava and with theatre directors tandem SKUTR.
In theatre, film and television she has collaborated at home and abroad with the following directors: V. Chytilová, J. Herz, J. Svěrák, T. Vorel, Š. and M. Caban, J. Brabec, K. Smyczek, L. Smoček, N. Datner, R. Hovenbitzer, P. Nikolaev, A. Sedláčková, D. Drábek, I. Zachariáš etc.
From 1995 to 2002 she was the costume designer for The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
Since 1983 she has exhibited her work in many individual and collective exhibitions in the Czech and abroad (Japan, USA, France, Denmark, Korea, Finland, UK etc.).
She has lectured and presented her work in University of Nebraska Lincoln; University of Kansas, Kansas City; Ohio State University Columbus, Unirio Rio de Janeiro, Senac Sao Paulo, Aalto University Helsinki, USITT in Pittsburg and Long Beach, Tokyo, Seoul, Manila and UK. She has initiated a number of workshops, organized by costume working group OISTAT, where she has an active role.
She has also received The Golden Triga, main award of the Prague Quadrennial International Exhibition of Scenography and Theatre Architecture, for Czech national exposition in 1999 (co-commissioner with Šimon Caban); Golden Medal for textile design in International Fair Brno; Special mention for design in dance film Piece by piece – Dance festival in Frankfurt and was several times nominated for Czech Annual film award Czech Lion , where she get award for the best costume for film of Jan Svěrák Three Brothers 2014 and for David Mrnka Milada in 2017. Outstanding work for theatre reflect the award for costume design in World stage design Cardiff 2013 and Taipei 2017 as well as Istan Excelence Award 2018 in Beijing.