RENATA BONFANTI: THE TEXTILE DESIGNER WHO UNITED SKY AND EARTH
Text by Brenda Vaiani
The story of Renata Bonfanti (1929-2018), who distinguished herself as the first Italian textile artist to elevate the rug into a design object, begins during the post-war reconstruction era in Italy. During this time, weaving was not recognised as an artistic profession. Bonfanti navigated a landscape where looms spun out exquisite lampas and brocades. Still, unlike these fabrics, rugs were detached from both the figurative aspect and this specific type of design process. The rugs that were prevalent were regional artisanal creations, aesthetically repetitive and small in size. For the less affluent classes, imported goods from France or the East were commonplace. This presented an evident void and a wide-open canvas for the creative potential to be unleashed.
Image: Renata Bonfanti, Kilim 3 (from the Bengala series), 1982 linen, wool and meraklon 226 x 182 cm / 89 x 71.5 in. © Greg Carideo. Image above: Renata Bonfanti, Riflessi (from the Algeria series), 1995 linen and wool. © Greg Carideo
Renata Bonfanti chose an unconventional path for her time by dedicating her work to rugs. Her father, Francesco Bonfanti, a proto-rationalist architect from the textile city of Valdagno, backed this ambition, ensuring that Renata's dream did not remain unrealised. On the contrary, it would be crowned in 1961 with the Compasso d'Oro, a significant award given by the Industrial Design Association to recognise and enhance the quality of Italian design.
Image: Renata Bonfanti, Rilievo su tela (from the arazzi series), 1980-83 (detail). © Greg Carideo.
Renata's first step on this journey led her to Venice, where she studied with Anna Fredrika Karolina Akerdahl, a painter, graphic designer, and textile artist born in Stockholm, who was involved in discussions about artistic craftsmanship. This experience introduced Renata to a new facet of weaving – the Nordic style. Deeply inspired, she decided to venture to far-off Norway, where she honed her craft under the guidance of Else Halling, a textile artist known for her unique approach to reclaiming and reinterpreting traditional national motifs. There, Renata gained extensive technical and personal knowledge and recognised her potential as a female textile artist.
Image: Renata Bonfanti, Algeria 4 (from the Algeria series), 1968 (detail). © Greg Carideo.
It is worth noting that despite weaving traditionally being a female-dominated practice, the realms of artistry and design were predominantly male territories during that era. Upon returning to Italy, Renata Bonfanti discovered a country ready to make a significant leap towards modernity from a project-based standpoint. She would be a part of this transformation. Her encounters with Bruno Munari, Jacqueline Vodoz, and Bruno Danese, along with her collaboration with Gio Ponti and other luminaries of Italian design, marked the creation of her first significant works, pieces of art laid out on the ground.
Image: Renata Bonfanti, The Art of Weaving (selected works from 1968-2009), 2023 installation view, Kaufmann Repetto, New york © Greg Carideo.
Her "Knotted" series, meticulously handmade following the Scandinavian "long floating threads" technique, foreshadowed a style described as "poetic abstraction," a style she never abandoned. With the "Algeria" rugs, she moved away from hues of orange and red, embracing sandy tones alternated with deeper, shadowy colours. Above all, these rugs transformed into tapestries, objects that not only create but also adorn the space, connecting "sky and earth," just like in ancient times. The designs were composed directly on the loom with weavers contributing by varying the sequence of decorative motifs during execution, simulating the folds and crevices of the earth, sudden valleys, or dried-up rivers.
Image: Renata Bonfanti, Le bolle (from the Arazzi series), 2009 (detail). © Greg Carideo.
This was just the beginning. From her father, Renata Bonfanti absorbed an innovative concept: weaving must correlate with the architecture it is intended to inhabit. "I can't draw a rug, a tapestry, or a fabric without envisioning their placement," she would say. Throughout her career, Renata stood out for her unique ability to create a spiritual communion of intentions, taking into consideration space, light, and furnishings as a unified whole.
Find out more:
www.renatabonfanti.com