ABOUT BARBARA

Born in 1939 and raised in Chicago, Beckmann would grow to become an expert, leader, and legend in the textile design and production business world-wide. Her exquisite hand-painted fabrics became world famous and highly sought-after. Memorably, her work was featured at the Brooklyn Museum along with Richard Avedon and Elaine de Kooning. She both studied and taught textile design throughout her career, and was an early proponent of using environmentally friendly all-natural fibers and non-toxic agents at her small factory in San Francisco. 

 

Barbara received her BFA at the University of Illinois, studied and the Chicago Art Institute, the Pratt Institute, UC Berkeley.  She also taught Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising and UC Berkeley extension.  She was an active member of ASID, HIA, NEWH, DFA, and the Foundation for Design Integrity. In 2008 she received the IFDA Trailblazer Award for Achievement in the Interior Design Industry.

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​Barbara Beckmann was a prolific textile artist with over 500 different patterns brought to market. Her textiles draped the White House windows and adorned lobbies of hotels around the globe including The Helmsley Palace, Four Seasons, Wynn Hotels and Silicon Valley’s Rosewood Hotel. Her fabrics can also be seen on movie and TV sets like The Butler, Ocean’s 11 and dozens of episodes of Miami Vice in the 1980’s. She was highly sought after by the top interior designers to create hand-painted fabrics for A-list clients who became lifelong fans of her work.

 

Barbara was widely admired for her great smile, boundless energy, warmth and generosity to her friends, colleagues and competitors.  Barbara continued to design and produce new design concepts up until her death in August 2018.