This new programme was developed in collaboration with the Bernat Klein Foundation and Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts, and Design, Stockholm. The Bernat Klein Fellowships are generously supported by the William Grant Foundation and The Embassy of Sweden in London. In 2025, two Bernat Klein Fellowships have been awarded to established textile designers / textile artists based in Scotland and Sweden. The Fellowships are fully funded and include residencies, the opportunity for supported research including access to the national Bernat Klein archive collections in Scotland, and the support required for the development of new work.

Bernat Klein (1922-2014) was a Serbian-born textile designer, artist, and writer who emigrated to Scotland and established a successful textile design and manufacturing business in the Scottish borders (1951-1992). His 1960s couture fabrics were bought by the leading London and Paris fashion houses such as Chanel and Dior. Throughout his life Klein practised as an artist, which informed his ideas about colour that permeated all aspects of his work as a designer. Klein also wrote two books, Eye for Colour (1965) and Design Matters (1976). He created a set of six Personal Colour Guides (1965) based on his exploration of colour and its practical application for fashion, as well as Coordinated Colour Guides for Interiors (1971). He also realised two important modernist buildings in Scotland – his home and a studio – designed by the architect Peter Womersley.