Frantisek Makes (born 1931 in Zlin, Czechoslovakia) is a Swedish artist, scientist and chemist, speciaslising in the conservation of art objects.
He studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague. In the mid-1960s, he participated in the preservation work of the Royal collection in Prague and reached great international fame for his conservation work. After the occupation in 1968 he moved to Sweden and continued his research, where he was awarded a Ph.D. degree by the University of Gothenburg.
He worked, among other things, as chief curator of the Swedish royal palace and its art collections.
In 2005 Makes was awarded the “Gratias Agit Award” by the Czech Ministry of Culture.
In 2006 Makes was awarded H. M. The King’s Medal 8th size in silver with a blue ribbon for significant and sustained action on the preservation of art and painting, mainly in connection with the art collections at Skokloster.
Internationally, he is recognized for his scientific approach regarding the disclosure of imitation paintings and for his two patents in biochemistry. Today, Makes continues his research with polarographic analysis and is thus in the footsteps of Jaroslav Heyrovsky who received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1957. Makes’s latest research focuses on how we[who?] can best save our[who?] cultural heritage.