Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf

Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf was born in Wiesenbach (Brandenburg-Anspach). He was the descendant of a long line of Lutheran dyers from Wurtemberg. He learned the trade with his father, a manufacturer of printed cotton, established in Aarau (Switzerland).

In 1756, at the age of 18, young Oberkampf, acquired his independence and started working as an engraver at the printing factory of Samuel Koechlin and Dolfuss in Mulhouse. In 1758, he settled in Paris, and in 1762, with Antoine de Tavannes, he established a cotton printing factory in Jouy-en-Josas. Shortly before the French Revolution, it was the second industrial firm in France after Saint Gobain.

Between 1765 and 1805, the Manufactory was extremely successful. Oberkampf employed the best skilled workers and improved the printing processes: during the first ten years, he used woodblocks, then copper sheets and finally engraved copper rolls, which resulted in a faster printing process. The motifs were varied: flowers, birds, garlands, characters from fashionable novels and fables, exotic scenes in oriental style. Outstanding artists, such as Jean-Baptiste Huet (1745-1811), worked for the Manufactory.

Oberkampf sought technical innovations: cotton was bleached, and no longer spread out in the open air to whiten, the use of a single print of green, and not two, was developed, the colours are varied and well fixed and the lightweight fabrics were to be used for clothing as well as for upholstery. All this helped to build up the international reputation of the “Manufacture de Jouy”.

Under the “Consulat” (1799-1804), Oberkampf set up chemistry courses at Jouy, to which he invited famous teachers such as Berthollet and Gay-Lussac. In 1804, he built a cotton mill and weaving factory that supplied him with the necessary basic materials. The factory opened in 1810.

In 1806, Napoleon came to Jouy accompanied by the Empress, and awarded Oberkampf with the Légion d’Honneur. When Oberkampf died on 6 October 1815 in Jouy-en-Josas, his son Emile succeeded him as the head of the company.