When I discovered at the age of 14 that I could draw and “play” all my life, I didn’t hesitate
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Marie Pavlíčková, née Přibylová (first married name Krejchová), was born on 25 January 1941 in Prague and worked as a Czech toy designer. She came from the family of engineer Josef Přibyl, her mother was a housewife. She grew up in Prague, where she attended primary school in Kavalírka and Santoška, then studied toy design at the Industrial School of Housing Design in Žižkov. In 1960, she joined the Igra company, which was established in the 1950s after the nationalisation of private toy workshops. She designed a number of successful toys, including mechanical games, dolls and play sets. Her greatest success came in the 1970s with the popular Igráček figurine, whose design she profoundly influenced. She had to go through political checks during the normalisation period, but was never a member of the Communist Party. Her work travels also took her to toy fairs in West Germany, where she drew inspiration. In 1987, she left Igru and worked as a freelancer. After 1989, she devoted herself to commissioned work. She was married twice, she and her first husband Milan Krejcha raised two children, and in 1985 she married Josef Pavlíček, who was the chairman of Igra. In 2025 she was living in Prague.
