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Object Timeline
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Textile, Campagna
This is a Textile. It was designed by Angelo Testa and made for Knoll Associates, Inc.. It is dated 1947 and we acquired it in 2002. Its medium is linen and its technique is screen printed on plain weave. It is a part of the Textiles department.
Campagna, likely named after the designer Angelo Testa’s friend, Paul Campagna, epitomizes Testa’s design vocabulary. Designed around 1950 for Knoll Associates, Campagna utilizes Testa’s preferred linear and geometric forms, commonly associated with his Bauhaus training. The hard edges of the concentric rectangles in this textile, however, have been softened by their appearance of being almost hand-drawn.
This particular textile is one of the most well-known of Testa’s works and was published in many architecture and design journals of the day. It is indicative of his innovative work as one of the leading American textile designers of the 1940s and 1950s and represents an important moment in postwar America when textiles were a very calculated part of every modern interior.
Testa was one of the foremost American textile designers of the mid-20th century. In 1945, he was the first graduate of the Institute of Design (formerly the New Bauhaus) in Chicago, where he studied under the artist László Moholy-Nagy and the architect George Fred Keck. Although Testa worked primarily in the field of printed textiles, he was also widely known as a painter and sculptor. In 1947, he founded his own firm, Angelo Testa & Co., which remained active until his death in 1984. His clients included such major furniture companies as Knoll Associates and Herman Miller, as well as the textile firm, F. Schumacher & Co.
Campagna would be a significant addition to the museum’s 20th-century holdings and will also enhance our Testa holdings. This piece is an important example to include for its colorway alone. Testa made variations of Campagna (each also titled Campagna). At the time of proposed acquisition, one of these iterations is in the museum’s collection (1948-119-5).
Testa made variations of Campagna (each also titled Campagna). At the time of proposed acquisition, one of these iterations is in the museum’s collection (1948-119-5). The variation of Campagna under consideration, an important example for its colorway alone, would be a significant addition to the museum’s 20th-century textile collection and would also enhance our Testa holdings.
It is credited Gift of Nicholas A. Pappas, FAIA.
- Sidewall, In the White Room
- cut and sewn paper on paper support.
- Gift of Tracy Kendall.
- 2008-11-1
- Textile, Van Dyke Squares
- cotton.
- Gift of Arundell Clarke.
- 1956-150-8
- Textile, Pythagoras
- 60% linen, 40% cotton.
- Gift of Knoll Associates, Inc..
- 1956-123-1
Our curators have highlighted 3 objects that are related to this one.
- Bracelet (Netherlands)
- bent gold-plated steel rod.
- Museum purchase from Decorative Arts Association Acquisition Fund.
- 1993-114-1
- Sidewall, Edo
- screen-printed on paper.
- Gift of William Justema.
- 1969-70-2
- Katagami, Cross Pattern
- cut mulberry paper treated with persimmon tannin and silk thread.
- Gift of Helen Snyder.
- 1976-103-182
Its dimensions are
H x W: 136.5 x 65.7 cm (53 3/4 x 25 7/8 in.)
Cite this object as
Textile, Campagna; Designed by Angelo Testa (American, 1921–1984); Made for Knoll Textiles (United States); USA; linen; H x W: 136.5 x 65.7 cm (53 3/4 x 25 7/8 in.); Gift of Nicholas A. Pappas, FAIA; 2002-14-2
This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibition Maira Kalman Selects.
