He was visionary, energetic and exacting. He delighted in colour, texture and the great outdoors. He pushed boundaries and challenged conventions. In our latest DES podcast, we chat to Gráinne Rice about all things Bernat Klein, the Serbian-born textile designer and artist who for over 60 years lived and worked in the Scottish Borders. 

Gráinne has long immersed herself in the life and work of Bernat Klein. She first came across the designer and textile manufacturer in 2001 as a young researcher and has since gone on to acquire many of his exquisitely tailored outfits. She talks to Susanna about Klein's early years, his influences and his ideas  . . and she shares her favourite Klein outfit, a glorious 1970s kaftan coloured in a swirl and whirl of purples!

Klein who was born in 1922 in Serbia, moved to post-war Britain to study textile technology at the university of Leeds. In 1950, together with his new wife, collaborator & knitwear designer, Margaret Soper, he moved to the Scottish Borders, where their collective energy and vision produced truly beautiful and ground-breaking textiles. He innovated, wove velvet with mohair, brought colour and contours to printed fabric and in turn wowed the Paris catwalks. 

And Klein's delight in the contemporary was brilliantly exemplified in his and Margaret’s commissioning of the modernist architect, Peter Womersley (1923 – 1993) to build firstly, their home High Sunderland in 1957 and then a neighbouring studio in 1972, in the Borders near to Galashiels.

Bernat Klein died in 2014.

Dr Gráinne Rice is Adult Programme Coordinator in the Learning and Engagement team at National Galleries of Scotland. She is a Board Director of Uplands CIC and The Steven Campbell Trust.

To find out more about Klein, head to Bernat Klein Foundation, read The See-Through House by his daughter, Shelley Klein or visit online the National Museum of Scotland's Design in Colour. Find out more about Margaret Klein's often overlooked role as a knitwear designer in Fleece to Fashion. Read more about the Bernat Klein Fellowships at Cove Park, in Argyll. Find out more about Womersley's studio which was acquired in July by the Bernat Klein Foundation, National Trust for Scotland and the Scottish Historic Buildings Trust, who plan to renovate, restore and reopen this magnificent modernist masterpiece.

Thank you for listening to DES Talks - this is our seventh podcast - and do spread the word, share, subscribe, rave and rate. We are new to this game and keen to reach as many listeners as possible, far and wide. And huge thanks again to those who have helped make the first and now this second series happen. In particular, thanks to Malin Lewis for the music accompanying our DES Talks and Ryan Scott Film for production.

Design Exhibition Scotland was founded by Susanna Beaumont in 2018 to celebrate and champion making and creating through podcasts, exhibitions, conversations and commissions.

Production
Ryan Scott Film

Music
Malin Lewis