Creative Portfolio: Jitka Drahotska (2023)

About Hi!

My name is Jitka.

Originally from Prague, I have been living, studying, and creating in Scotland and England for the past five years. A historian on paper, I take photos, write plays, and try making space for other creatives.

I learned to embrace the age, noise, and pixels of the old digital camera I have used for the last ten years.

I found beauty in high contrast and odd framing. It often helps me hide behind my shyness as a photographer.

Underwater museum of statues, Czechia.

Events

Secondary school student-led orchestra and choir performing their last concern of the sea

Last-minute living room rehearsal session of a Christmas concert, northern Bohemia, Czechia

Events

Promotion

1 An actress performing during an open air theatre festival at Vimperk Castle, Czechia

2 Darwin College Man's Football Team defending their season's title during a rainy afternoon match, Cambridge, England

3-4 Performers of Prague's student music festival

As a historian, I find it fascinating to observe people interact with the heaviness of the world I study through my books... only to find out my lens often tells completely different stories than I would expect.

Architecture

1 People enjoying a sunny afternoon at the Barbican, covered in Sahara sand, London.

2 The Leaning Tower of Pisa, Italy

3 The ruins of Ardvreck Castle, Scotland

4 St Paul's Cathedral, London 2

One would not believe how much creativity and patience one develops after editing a school magazine and an undergraduate academic journal in Word for four years.

The pages are from a school magazine I led for two years The magazine won the 2nd place in Prague and the 8th place in the national round of school magazines

As the co-founder and lead designer of the Aberdeen Historical Review for two years, I learnt a lot about the meticulous and rigid guidelines of academic publishing.

And I always loved returning to my creative freedom while working on conference slides

Pages from a special issue of the magazine, titled 'Learning to Learn'

It presented screenplays, poetry, photographs, sketches, cheat lists for tests, and music compositions

But I have always looked for new things to learn, materials to use and ideas to layer.

Work with young people

As a castle tour guide, I assisted with the promotion and facilitation of the education programmes, including the "Build Your Castle" activity, guiding pupils and families in constructing an arch

As a mentor, I enjoy creating examples for my mentees For instance, this diorama was built from recycled material for the Arts Award workshops

Workshops

Workshop on the medieval kings of Bohemia at the Czech School in Cambridge

Growing up in a family of teachers, I was always surrounded by creative projects for young people.