Josef Svoboda (10 May 1920 – 8 April 2002) was a Czech artist and scenic designer. He was a production designer and director, known for Amadey (1984), Laterna Magika: Puzzles (1996) and Laterna Magika: Trap (1999).
Svoboda became the principal designer at the Czech National Theatre in 1948 and held that position for more than 30 years. His multimedia installations Laterna Magika and Polyekran, realized together with director Alfréd Radok and his brother Emil on the occasion of the Expo 58 in Brussels, allowed him to be internationally known. These productions introduced the combination of live actors and filmed projections. Svoboda is also responsible for introducing modern technologies and materials such as plastics, hydraulics and lasers into his designs. In 1967, Svoboda created one of his best known special effects, a three-dimensional pillar of light. This was created by the use of an aerosol mixture which revealed low-voltage luminaries.
Josef Svoboda considered himself a scenographer rather than a designer; he chose to show a more holistic, architectural, non-naturalistic approach to design. His 700-plus designs include Insect Comedy (Czech National Theatre, 1946); Rusalka (Teatro La Fenice, Venice, 1958); Carmen (Metropolitan Opera, New York City, 1972); The Firebird (Royal Danish Theatre, Copenhagen, 1972); I Vespri Siliciani (Metropolitan Opera, 1974); Jumpers (Kennedy Center, 1974), many of them realized together with the opera director Václav Kašlík.
He left the Czech National Theatre in 1992. A year later, he became artistic director of the Laterna Magika Theatre.
