Her name is Agatha Frankova and she is currently studying paint work at Skoda Auto Secondary Vocational School. In the second year, Agata participated in the production of the student car Azubi Rodiak, i.e. Enyak Motorhome. It could have changed her life.
At first, he was supposed to be responsible for sketching the project, but he volunteered to help with sketches of the initial design. As he did so well, his work caught the attention of exterior design coordinator Jiri Hadasik and Skoda Auto chief designer Oliver Stefani. They “pulled” her out of the paint booth after a while and offered her an internship in the car company’s design department.
She came there to gather experience, to learn. “It was really serious. In the beginning, the designers led by Oliver Stephany and Karl Neuholt taught me the correct proportions of the sketches, and I feel that I have made a lot of progress in this regard. I started working with the graphic programs used here. I learned to use a modern tablet with a pencil, which you can draw on paper. Allowing you to draw,” Agatha describes her impressions.
Photo: Skoda Auto
Agatha Frankova is responsible for the design side of Rodiak Concept.
“It works well for me here. Everyone is nice to me, they want to work with me, they support me in trying new things. There is a great team spirit here. Oliver Stefani once saw a painting of mine that he liked, so he came back and gave me some tricks,” Agatha laughs. “I try to draw something new that no one has seen before. It’s very difficult, that’s why you have to find different inspiration and move forward,” he adds.
For her, working in design is very intense, but she will get used to it. “Probably every job can be stressful, you can be under pressure because you can’t continue with something or something doesn’t turn out the way you want. But this is my dream job and I will definitely get used to this pressure,” says Agatha. “I also like to speak multiple languages with complete self-awareness in the local environment,” he adds.
For now, Agata is mainly learning, but she still wants to be an asset to the design studio. He is involved in daily work and some specific projects. And given the chance, he would like to influence the design language of Skoda cars in the future. For example, she likes the current direction of the family of electric models, which should have a consistent design language, but at the same time, according to her, should be very different from each other. “I like more aggressive curves, when the car frowns a bit, it’s dangerous. Or, on the contrary, cars that make people laugh,” Agatha describes her taste.
Among modern Skoda cars, for example, the third-generation Octavia RS or the third-generation Superb, he admires, but he will look for inspiration in some drawings he has drawn in the past. “For me, the first generation Skoda Fabia and the first generation Octavia are the best models, they are amazingly timeless cars,” reveals Agata.
Student work on Skoda Rodiac.Video: Skoda Auto
At the moment, she’s mainly focused on finishing college, but admits she’s thinking about a future as a designer, which she originally dreamed of, but she just couldn’t find a way. She loved cars since childhood.
“The first meeting with people from design management was very fascinating for me, but I didn’t really expect anything. The surprise was very good and I am very grateful for this opportunity,” Agatha says about the internship she attended at the end of the last school year. Now she plans to go into design instead of working on the production line for the entire school year.
Photo: Skoda Auto
“After finishing school, we talked with Oliver Stefani that I should do a two-year extension with a high school diploma and then go to some university. I’m also handling courses and a certificate in English. They can see that they’re interested in me here and want to move me,” says Agatha. “I’m still trying to work with the fact that nothing is decided. I still have a long way to go, but the motivation is huge,” he says humbly.
“Agata is very sensitive and hard-working, and she has an undeniable talent. We are glad that we discovered such a talent and that we can support its development,” says Jiri Hatashik, Exterior Design Coordinator.
And all we have to do is make Agatha’s journey to her dream a smooth one.
