Photo: Ines Novković
Barbara Bourek, Croatian artist and costume designer. She graduated in painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb under professor Đuro Seder. Since 1994, she has been working as a self-employed artist, designing costumes for the theater and film and television. She created a number of notable costume designs for opera, ballet, musicals, drama and children’s plays in Croatia and abroad (National Opera Bucharest, Romania; Theater des Akademischen Gymnasiums Wien, Austria; Slovensko narodno gledališče Maribor, Slovenia).
She teaches courses in the fields of theatre and film costume design at the Academy of Applied Arts, University of Rijeka, and at the Faculty Textile Technology, University of Zagreb.
She has won a number of awards in Croatia and abroad (Golden Arena for Best Costume Design for Branko Ivanda’s film Lea and Darija; Croatian Theatre Arts Award for The Beauty and the Beast by Menken, H. Ashman and T. Rice, produced by the Trešnja Municipal Theatre in Zagreb; for The Miser by J. B. P. Molière, directed by Dora Ruždjak Podolski, and produced by the Kerempuh Satirical Theatre in Zagreb; for The Insects… An Interrupted Story, based on Karel and Josef Čapek’s work, directed by Saša Anočić, and produced by the Croatian National Theatre in Split; etc.).
Awards:
Croatian Theatre Arts Award for Best Costume Design for the Beauty and the Beast musical by Menken / H. Ashman / T. Rice, produced by the Trešnja Municipal Theatre (2008)
Croatia Theatre Arts Award for Best Costume Design for J. B. P. Molière’s The Miser, directed by Dora Ruždjak Podolski, and produced by the Kerempuh Satirical Theatre in Zagreb, and for the drama The Insects… An Interrupted Story, based on Karel and Josef Čapek’s work, directed by Saša Anočić, and produced by the Croatian National Theatre in Split (2021)
Golden Arena for Best Costume Design for the film Lea and Darija directed by Branko Ivanda, and produced by Ars Septima. Pula Film Festival (2011)
Acknowledgment of the University of Rijeka for achievements in 2020 that contributed to the promotion, development, and reputation of the University of Rijeka (2021)
Award for Best Costume Design at the International Theatre Encounters of the Brčko District, for J.B.P. Molière’s The Miser produced by the Kerempuh Satirical Theatre, Zagreb (2022)
Rudof Bunk Award, HNK Split, for Best Costume and Set Design, for the overall visual identity of the play The Insects… An Interrupted Story (2022)
Acknowledgment of the University of Rijeka for achievements in 2021 that contributed to the promotion, development, and reputation of the University of Rijeka (2022)
Award for Best Costume Design at the Theater at the Crossroads in Niš, Serbia, for J.B.P. Molière’s drama The Miser, produced by the Kerempuh Satirical Theatre, Zagreb (2023).
Mentoring, awards:
Papandopulo’s opera Madame Buffault – Rector’s Award for the project as a whole and Special Recognition for Costume Design for Madame Buffault (costume design mentor, University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2014/15)
- F. Händel’s opera Agrippina – Rector’s Award for the project as a whole and Special Recognition for Costume Design for Agrippina (costume design mentor, University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2015/16)
Second and Third Prize for the concept of toga in the contest for best design of toga, chain and souvenir – 45th Anniversary of the University of Rijeka (mentor, University of Rijeka Applied Arts Academy, AY 2017/18)
Leoš Jánaček’s opera The Cunning Little Vixen (Mala lukava Lisica) – Rector’s Award for the project as a whole (costume design mentor, University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2016/17)
- A. Mozart’s opera Cosi fan tutte – Rector’s Award for the project as a whole (costume design mentor, University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2017/18)
Rector’s Award for Costume Design for The Antigone Project (Projekt Antigona) in the category of best scientific and artistic team work (mentor, University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2018/19)
Rector’s Award for the project Reflections of the Bauhaus (Refleksije Bauhausa) – Costume Design (mentor, University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2019/20)
Rector’s Award for the opera Cinderella (Pepeljuga) for the project as a whole (costume design mentor, University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2019/20)
Rector’s Award for the project Waiting for Godot (U očekivanju Godota) in the category of best scientific and artistic team work (mentor, University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2020/21)
Rector’s Recognition for exceptional success of international import awarded to the second-year graduate student of Textile and Fashion Design majoring in Costume Design, Karmen Polović, for her costume design for A Mad King Idomeneo by W. A. Mozart, A. Campra, and P. M. Davis, a project of the Swiss Opera Studio in Bern University of the Arts, Switzerland, and the Faculty of Textile Technology (costume design mentor, University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2020/21)
Rector’s Award in the category of best scientific and artistic team work (one to ten authors) for costume design for The Avantgarde Theatre of Sergije Glumac (Avangardni teatar Sergija Glumca) (costume design mentor), University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2021/22)
- Kuljarić’s opera Animal Farm – Rector’s Award for the project as a whole (costume design mentor), University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2021/22)
- Kuljarić’s opera Animal Farm – the annual Vatroslav Lisinski Award of the Croatian Composers’ Society and the Milka Trnina Diploma awarded by the Croatian Society of Musical Artists for a particularly successful and notable artistic performance in the Republic of Croatia in the previous year to chamber, vocal, orchestral, or musical theatre ensembles (costume design mentor, University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2021/22)
Opera B. Papanodopulo: Amfitrion – Rector’s Award for the project as a whole (costume design mentor, University of Zagreb Faculty of Textile Technology, AY 2022/23)