Issue 36 2023 - Journal - Page 80
Bernat Klein: Design
in Colour exhibition open
A new exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland explores the life and career of one of the
20th century’s leading forces in Modernist design, in the centenary year of his birth. Bernat
Klein: Design in Colour celebrates the work of the Serbian-born textile designer Bernat Klein
(1922 - 2014) who settled in the Scottish Borders after the Second World War.
The exhibition examines his creative process and varied
career; from supplying innovative couture fabrics to some
of Europe’s top fashion houses to his strong influence
on architecture and interior design in the UK and
Scandinavia.
Opening on 5 November, it marks the centenary of Klein’s
birth and is part of a series of cultural events developed
by the Bernat Klein Foundation to celebrate the designer
in 2022. It charts his 60-year career as a textile designer,
artist, educator, and colour consultant.
National Museums Scotland acquired his archive in 2010.
This internationally significant collection of around
4,000 objects ranges from fabrics and garments to design
development material.
Highlights from the collection are on display in the
exhibition - including couture fashion, interior designs,
textiles and original artworks - alongside newly acquired
pieces which contextualise Klein’s work and recognise his
legacy. Made possible with Art Fund support through the
New Collecting Awards, these acquisitions include
creations by fellow textile designers Ascher Ltd and Tibor
Reich.
Bernat Klein was born in Yugoslavia (now Serbia) in
1922, to an Orthodox Jewish family who ran a wholesale
textile business. He attended the Bezalel School of Art &
Craft in Jerusalem in the 1940s, where his exposure to
Bauhaus ideas and the modernist architecture of Israel
had a profound influence on him.
He escaped the rise of Naziism across Europe, going on
to study textile technology at Leeds University before
settling in the historic textile centre of Galashiels in the
Scottish Borders, establishing his design and manufacturing business, Colourcraft in 1952.
Part of a new wave of designers re-invigorating British
industry and contributing to economic regeneration
in the post-war period, he is best known for his
highly original fashion textiles, with their rich textures
and exuberant colour palette. A significant career
breakthrough came when Coco Chanel selected one of
Below, Curator Lisa Mason, researcher and collector Graí nne
Rice and staff member Kirsten Cowie with vintage Bernat
Klein design. Photographer credit © Neil Hanna.
