Call: +44 79670 88348 Email: Jane@FrostArt.co.uk
Slowing Down, taking time
I started writing about Slow Making in 2006, for several years I have not had time or been in the right place to concentrate on ideas or writing. Now seems the right time to revisit and refine the thinking. On Slow Art Day I have been looking at some of my studio stock in a different light.
Slowing down, again to revisit and review what matters in the world just now, I spent about two hours just sitting and looking at the work of Bernat Klein.
I do not own any of his art work or have any of his clothes, textiles or printed material so most of the time was spent online.
What I do own are prototype yarns developed in the workshops of The Scottish College of Textiles. I have memories of lecturers and technicians at the college being somewhat surprised and dismissive of the yarn developed because they were unstable or had complex mixes of fibres. Bernat was not really interested in the traditional techniques and machinery used to produce yarns, he was far more focussed on fibres for their texture than useful properties. Where technicians like to make sure things work and will be long lasting, his priority was always the appearance and effect on the garment. The yarns were sometimes fragile and unstable as a result, but were fabulous colours and combinations of fibre and textures.
Bernat Klein had also worked with The Dovecot studios, with amazingly skillful weavers who collaborated on his designs for tapestries. A result of doing this little bit of research into the work has highlighted a lot of wonderful reference material, including panel discussions at the Dovecot in 2015, when a retrospective "A Life in Colour" was staged there.
I met him and visited 'High Sunderland', the wonderful commissioned house and studio in the 1970's as a post graduate student at the Scottish College of Textiles. I wanted to understand more about the development processes and techniques of making, much more interested in that than selling work or being famous.
He was a delightful man, but even then I realised he could be somewhat annoying to those who had to live with him. Passionate and prolific about his work, he had become very successful working with famous fashion and textile designers and architects.
When I met him he had become a skilful painter, using colour in ways others did not seem to achieve. He did not seem limited by the need to portray realism, his passion was purely about colour and atmosphere.
In Eye for Colour he says 'I visualised colours in their multitudes to remain an amorphous, cloudy hint of tints, of softened and endless possibilities...I dreamt of cloth vibrant with colour. I wanted reds that were redder and blues that were bluer than anything I had ever seen before'
I have memories of lecturers and technicians at the college being somewhat surprised and dismissive of his yarns designed and developed in the workshops. Bernat was not really interested in the traditional techniques and machinery used to produce yarns. He was far more focussed on fibres for their texture than useful properties. Technicians like to make sure things work, their priority was how will it be for the weaver or knitter or how long lasting in the garment. His was always appearance, how the colours were enhanced and effect on handling and wearing the garment. The yarns were frequently fragile and unstable as a result, but always looked stunning!
In looking into Bernat Kleins work I happened upon references to my own work as a post graduate student at the Scottish College of Textiles, Slow Making indeed! I developed a range of 40 colours in the dye workshops, for a range of weaving and knitting yarns. I was 22 years old and wanted to learn everything and experience all that the textile world had to offer. I loved Scotland and the potential life had for me. Only now do I realise how much I achieved and how much I still make use of what I learned there.
For a few weeks my weaving was very influenced by Bernat Klein. amples from upholstery cloth, Donegal yarn. Woven in 1978.
If I should have acknowledged anyone and have failed to I apologise
Here are some references you may like to follow
https://thevintagetraveler.wordpress.com/2014/04/29/bernat-klein-1922-2014/
https://dovecotstudios.com/tapestry-studio/artists-weavers-tufters/bernat-klein/
http://hippystitch.blogspot.com/2015/08/bernat-klein-life-in-colour-dovecot.html
http://staging.nms.ac.uk/explore-our-collections/stories/art-and-design/bernat-klein-collection/
