Bernat Klein (1922-2014) was a designer of national and international standing who transformed the Borders textile industry during the 30 years throughout which he was an advocate for design. Throughout his career as a textile designer, but also as an artist, colourist and industrialist, Bernat Klein has contributed to the reputation of the Scottish Borders textile industry. Selling his creative tweeds around the globe, Bernat Klein supplied Haute Couture Houses such as Chanel with astonishing and highly recognizable colourful tweeds. This fabric, inspired by the texture and the colours of the Scottish Borders, and designated in the fashion magazines of the time as Scottish Mohair, contributed, for example, to the success of the iconic “Tailleur Chanel” in 1963 as mentioned in Bernat Klein’s memoires (Klein, 1965). However, despite the impact of this collaboration identified thanks to a couple of mentions and press cuts, very few is known about Bernat Klein activity with the Parisian Haute Couture in general and Chanel in particular.
Output Type:
Book Section
Uncontrolled Keywords:
Bernat Klein; Chanel; Textile heritage; Scottish Borders; Haute-Couture; Paris Fashion