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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sonja Ingrid Bata OC MSM CD (or Sonja Baťová; née Wettstein; 8 November 1926 – 20 February 2018) was a Swiss Canadian businesswoman, philanthropist, collector and museum founder,[1] who initially trained as an architect.[2][3]
Sonja Bata | |
---|---|
Born | Sonja Ingrid Wettstein 8 November 1926 Zürich, Switzerland |
Died | 20 February 2018 91) | (aged
Burial place | Mount Pleasant Cemetery |
Nationality | Swiss |
Other names | Sonja Baťová |
Occupation(s) | Businesswoman, philanthropist, collector and museum founder |
Spouse | Thomas J. Bata |
Children | 4 |
Relatives | Tomáš Baťa (father-in-law) |
She left her architecture studies after her marriage to Thomas J. Bata of Bata Shoes and moved to Toronto in 1946, befriending those in the architecture community – Raymond Moriyama designed the Bata Shoe Museum, while John Cresswell Parkin designed the impressive Don Mills headquarters of Bata Shoes and the family's country house in Batawa.[4] Though she had earlier envisioned herself to become a great architect, she set her designs on improving the Bata Shoe company.[5]
Also in the 1940s, she began collecting shoes and studying their history. In 1979, she endowed the Bata Shoe Museum Foundation. The Bata Shoe Museum, established in 1995, is the world's largest shoe museum,[6] and the core collection is attributed to Bata.[7] She was the museum's chairperson.[8]
Bata was also the chair of the National Design Council (1970s).[9] She helped establish the Toronto French School, served as director the Art Gallery of Ontario, sat on the boards of Alcan and Canada Trustco (now TD Canada Trust), affiliated with the World Wildlife Fund,[10] and became an Honorary Captain in the RCN and sponsor of HMCS Ottawa.[1]
She was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1983.[11] She died at her home in Toronto on 20 February 2018, outliving her husband for nine years. She was buried alongside him at Mount Pleasant Cemetery.
She had four children.[12] Her father-in-law is Tomáš Baťa, the founder of Bata Shoes.[citation needed] [13]
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