Prof Sylva Petrova
BiographyProfessor Sylva Petrova is internationally profiled curator and researcher in glass with a broad experience in contemporary applied art and craft.
Born in 1952 in the former Czechoslovakia, she studied High School of Art in Prague and History of Art at the University of Olomouc (1971 - 1976). She was awarded her PhD History of Visual Art and Aesthetics in 1978 there. In 1985 as a glass curator she joined the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague, where she was soon promoted to the post of the Department of the 20th Century Design Leader, then became Curator in Chief there.
In 1998 Petrova was offered a position of Professor in Glass the University of Sunderland and has since become the Director of the Institute for International Research in Glass there. She has sat on international juries for world glass competitions in glass in France, Great Britain, Germany, USA, Italy, Japan, Australia and the Czech Republic (2001 Judge on panel for the Award 2001 The Thomas Foundation Pilchuck Committee, Melbourne, Australia 1999 Judge of panel for International competition The Glass Vessel Koganezaki Museum, Japan, 1994. Member of panel World Glass Now '94, Sapporo, Japan, etc.) In 2010 she has been a member of the Glass British Biennale jury.
She has curated exhibitions of glass (applied art) in the Czech Republic, UK, Croatia, Hungary, France, Finland, Italy, Japan, Belgium, United States, Switzerland, Spain, and Slovak Republic. Dr. Petrova published a row of important books and catalogues, and contributed some 45 others published in France, Italy, USA, Japan, UK, Finland, Switzerland, Australia Germany, Hungary, etc. She is lecturing broadly as well, and served a position of keynote speakers in the UK, Australia, USA, Czech Republic, Latvia, etc.
Her most notable achievement has been her sole authored book Czech Glass, published in 2001 which received the Czech Ministry of Culture National Award: "The Most Beautiful Book of the Year 2001". The launch of the book was carried out in Prague, Sunderland, London, Chicago, Corning, Amsterdam, New York, and Tokyo.
1995 Dr. Petrova was awarded by the Allen Moe Prize for the "Outstanding Museum Catalogue", NY, and USA with J. Setlik, T. Buechner, and S. Frantz. In 2006 she received Award of the Czech Republic Commissar for outstanding representation Czech Republic abroad. 2006 she was awarded by the National Price of the Academy of Science of the Czech Republic for research resulted in the book History of Czech Visual Art, Volume V. for outstanding research achievement.
Since 1998 onward she is a member of an International Board of the Pilchuck Glass School, WA, USA.
Research Interests
Professor Petrova is an art historian researching an international contemporary art glass practice bordering fine art. She is known as an expert for Czech glass namely.
Research Activities
Professor Petrova research activities are framed by her background. She is working as a curator of the various international shows (recently, Czech Republic, Slovak Republic, Croatia), working on various projects and grants (British Academy), writing sole authored books (Czech and Slovak Glass in Exile, 2007), publishing articles and contributions into the books (recently The Netherlands, the UK, Germany), working in the international juries (recently in France, Germany, and the USA). She is involved in an extended PhD. glass programme in the UK and the Czech Republic, and is running the international activities of the Institute for International Research in Glass the University of Sunderland, organizing symoposia, conferences, etc.