Keys handed over to new owners of architectural masterpiece in Scottish Borders
Urgent repair works are to begin to the Grade A-listed building
The keys to the modernist masterpiece of the Bernat Klein Studio have been handed over to its new owner following its sale at auction.
A consortium of design and heritage groups, including National Trust for Scotland, now have entry to the studio near Selkirk where Klein, a former spy, went on to create fabrics for Dior and Chanel for more than 20 years.
The studio was designed in 1972 by architect Peter Wormersley, a friend of Klein’s, but it fell into a delapitated state after it was bought by a property developer, whose vision for the Grade A -listed building never materialised.
The Bernat Klein Studio went up for auction in July with a guide price of just £18,000.
Following a bidding war, it was secured by a coalition comprising the Bernat Klein Foundation (BKF), the National Trust for Scotland and the Scottish Historic Buildings Trust, with ownership of the building secured for £284,240.
READ MORE: Interview: Bernat Klein
An urgent repair project will now get under way, with full restoration costs estimated to be between £2.5m and £3m.
Professor Alison Harley, chair of trustees, Bernat Klein Foundation, said: “These are exciting times for the Bernat Klein Foundation and our supporters.
“The coalition has worked long and hard to buy and protect the Klein Studio.
“Our new partnership will be focusing on the entwined legacies of Bernat Klein and Peter Womersley and this unique opportunity for the creative industries.
“In this next important stage of the project, the BKF will continue to support new creative output through its public programme inspired by Klein’s creative and cultural legacy.”
Once the restoration project is finished, the building will return to its original use as a design studio, which will be possible to visit, and serve as a permanent base in the Scottish Borders for the Bernat Klein Foundation.
Philip Long, chief executive, National Trust for Scotland, said the trust and other groups had been working behind the scenes for several years to save the “outstanding building”.
He said: “The modernist creation is so important, both for its architectural design and the rich heritage it represents as part of Scotland’s world-renowned creativity in textiles, and we are proud to support its restoration to safeguard its future.
“Through our partnership, we can be confident that this significant building, its stories and its place within Scotland’s heritage, will be protected for generations to come.”
The design of the studio, near Selkirk, was influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater in the US.
It has been on the Buildings at Risk register since 2002 and a specialist conservation design team will be appointed to fully investigate the condition of the building.
The state of the building’s concrete cladding, an important element of Womersley’s 1972 design, is of particular concern.
Dr Samuel Gallacher, director of the Scottish Historic Buildings Trust, said: “This will be a seminal project for Scottish Historic Buildings Trust, heralding new ways of working and a new approach to conserving modernist architecture.
“The scale of the repair and restoration required at Peter Womersley’s Bernat Klein Studio is extensive and will take many months, the skills of specialists and the support of the many people who have an interest in both Peter Womersley and Bernat Klein’s work.”
National Lottery Heritage Fund, National Lottery players and the Architectural Heritage Fund Scotland are among those who are financially supporting the restoration.
Caroline Clark, director for Scotland at the National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “ The Bernat Klein Studio Coalition taking possession of this very special building delivers an opportunity to give it a new creative life.”
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