To celebrate its 150th anniversary, Tessitura Luigi Bevilacqua has published an extraordinary volume: a precious object conceived as a tangible and visual testament to its history, its craft, and the textile legacy it has safeguarded for generations. Presented during an exclusive event at our atelier in Santa Croce, the book brings together previously unpublished materials and images of our most iconic fabrics, offering direct access to the universe of one of the world’s most prestigious manufacturers.
When Images Bring Fabrics to Life
The volume is a visual sensory experience featuring a selection of 150 iconic fabrics chosen for their artistic, technical, and historical value. Each textile is reproduced in real scale, the result of the full digitization of the Archive carried out as part of the PNRR–TOCC program, allowing readers to immerse themselves in the details, the sheen of silk, chromatic depth, and the complexity of the designs.
The archive sheets, presented at a 1:5 scale, complete the work with essential information including type, production date, and commissioning client.
It forms a gallery that illustrates not only the evolution of taste but also the network of prestigious relationships that have shaped the history of the Tessitura. Among the most distinguished patrons are Popes Pius XII and John XXIII, the Queen of Sweden, important historic residences and sacred Venetian sites such as Palazzo Mocenigo and the Basilica della Salute, as well as luxury restaurants, theaters and hotels such as Grancaffè Quadri, the Gothenburg Opera House, and Hotel Metropole, reaching even symbolic locations of international diplomacy including the White House and the Kremlin.
The book also recounts several significant collaborations, including the one with Roberta di Camerino. A journey that highlights Tessitura Bevilacqua’s innate ability to engage with contemporary creativity while preserving its extraordinary heritage of artisanal excellence.
The Story Behind the Fabrics: Sketches, Designs, Letters
Alongside the images of the fabrics, the volume reveals a corpus of documents and historical photographs, many of which are previously unseen, offering a rare and fascinating glimpse behind the scenes of textile creation.
Freehand sketches that reveal the first spark of a design; millimeter-paper technical drawings that translate motifs into the language needed for Jacquard loom cards; technical sheets, vintage photographs, and most notably, a selection of letters and correspondence carrying the elegant and formal voice of another era: requests, acknowledgments, negotiations, and anecdotes that capture the cultural atmosphere, tastes, and aesthetic dynamics of the time.
These are documents that ignite the imagination: fragments of stories, conversations, and relationships that make each fabric not only a crafted object, but the result of a network of dialogues, ambitions, and shared visions.
The volume thus becomes a visual and narrative catalog, capable of merging documentary rigor with the allure of archival discovery.
Editorial Care and Print Quality
Printed by Grafiche Antiga, an Italian excellence renowned for its masterful blend of technology and savoir-faire, the volume is conceived as a true collector’s item. The choice of paper, the elegance of the layout, the quality of the binding, and the precision of the color reproduction were all carefully considered to enhance each plate and each document, conveying the three-dimensionality of the fabrics and the refinement of the designs.
An editorial approach that turns the book into not just a publication, but an immersive aesthetic experience.
A Heritage to Discover
With more than a century and a half of activity and roots in Venetian weaving dating back to 1499, Tessitura Luigi Bevilacqua safeguards a heritage that has endured through time, suspended between memory and innovation.
The volume dedicated to the 150th anniversary does not simply celebrate a milestone: it offers the public the richness of a unique artisan tradition and the vision that has carried it to the present day.
150th Anniversary Book Launch – Image Gallery
Thanks to the historical documentation, the selection of fabrics, and the quality of the reproductions, the book offers a comprehensive narrative of Tessitura Bevilacqua’s history and its role in preserving and enhancing Venetian textile art. A bridge between past and present, conceived for those who wish to know, experience, and safeguard this universe of excellence.
The publication is available for purchase at Tessitura Luigi Bevilacqua, Santa Croce 1320, Venice, or by writing to bevilacqua@luigi-bevilacqua.com. Each copy comes with a small gift as a token of gratitude to those who choose to become part of this story.
In memory of Angelo Rigo, historian and essayist from Treviso, founder of Disma, who dedicated his life to promoting archives and local memory.
Tessitura Luigi Bevilacqua: Bevilacqua Rodolfo, Bevilacqua Alberto
Antiga Edizioni 2025
Texts and Archival Research: Disma
Technical Coordination and Communication: Maddalena Vianello and Anna Scagnellato
Creative Direction and Graphic Design: Otium (Alessandro Fraccaro, Antonio Calandra)
Photography and Digitization: Otium (Filippo Guerra)
PM: Valentina Assenza
Editorial Coordination: Michela Antiga
Printed by Grafiche Antiga
Typeface: Heldane
Photo Credits: Filippo Guerra - Otium
