The Artisan Resource at NY NOW, is a semi-annual trade show for global artisans producing handmade products. A highly curated range of artisan enterprises showcase traditional and contemporary craftsmanship within the confines of the NY NOW tradeshow, the largest gift show in the US. With attendance in excess of 25,000 visitors from more than 85 countries, the Artisan Resource features 2,500 exhibitors.
Partner and advisor to the Artisan Resource, ByHand help companies prepare for success. Offering an Artisan and Handmade Seminar program in support of the expansion of the artisan market, ByHand share best practices in design, marketing and promotion. Helping to align buyers with artisans, they offer comprehensive programs that address critical issues for growing artisan enterprises, helping them to develop sellable products, find new buyers, and establish sustainable business models. ByHand works in over 60 countries.
The goal of the show is to support global artisans, increase opportunities for women, and help to preserve, and sustain artisan communities. ByHand and the HAND/EYE Fund bring greater recognition to the artisan sector, and support artisan businesses with the highest quality technical support, to help achieve greater success.
Website: http://byhandconsulting.com
Some of highlights from the Summer 2016 show included, Pais Textil, who foster the living culture of Peruvian textile weaving. The company is dedicated to the development of handcrafts in Peru, through the support of artisans working with ancient techniques.
Pais Textil help enhance the value of Traditional Peruvian handcrafts through sophisticated, contemporary design. The brand produce a line of brilliantly colored clutch bags in colors ranging from brilliant tangerine through fuschia.
Hand woven on a backstrap loom, each clutch is trimmed with a multi layered, contrasting tassle, inspired by the traditional Peruvian belts, or ‘chumpis’. Other styles are produced in subtle two tone color combinations, with traditional chevron patterns, and completed with a fringed edge.
Totes are similarly woven in monochromatic combinations of stripes and chevrons, with the addition of braided straps and brilliantly colored tassles.
Website: www.paistextil.com
Hilo Sagrado helps to rescue the cultural heritage of communities in Colombia by empowering women entrepreneurs and artisans. Working closely with the Wayuu people to create a modern version of the mochila bag, they also produce clutches and other accessories.
Each item is carefully hand crocheted, using traditional techniques that have been passed down for generations. Designs can take as much as a month to complete.
The traditionally shaped mochila bags feature complex geometric patterns in brilliant color combinations, with broad woven, or narrow braided straps, and each sporting complementary tassles. Similar patterns and colors are used for narrow bracelets, also completed with tiny colorful pompoms.
Website: http://byhandconsulting.com
Plume is a Brooklyn based fashion and home goods company, founded on the combination of traditional craft and modern design, as a means of providing empowerment to women around the world. Designed by founder Kate Collins, Plume carefully select women artisans from more than twenty countries to produce her designs, each one meticulously hand crafted.
Designs are produced in highly limited quantities, on a seasonal basis, with a carefully curated collection of pieces available only for a limited window. The collection includes beautifully crafted sandals and shoes produced in Nairobi, each pair exquisitely and understatedly embellished with glass beads.
Large straw bags are hand made in Bali from raffia, and embellished with colorful wool pompoms from Peru. And jewelry is made from semi-precious beads and combined with hand made silk tassles.
Website: www.plumecollection.com
The Muse Group is a sisterhood of women artists dedicated to creating jobs for young at-risk women in the Ivory Coast, West Africa. Training women through the Nzrama Project, the Muse Group train women in jewelry making alongside other professional development opportunities.
Their uniquely African designs are inspired by the vibrant traditions of the region. The long Kpenzuku necklace, a featured piece in the collection, is made from woven, hand carved sea shell sequins, originating from Togo and Benin, and recycled plastic sequins originating from the Ivory Coast.
Bronze cast discs are produced traditionaly by the Baoule craftsmen, who individually carve wax molds, and bury them under a fire to cure. Crushed glass beads are from recycled glass that has been ground into a power and melted into new shapes.
Website: www.musegroup.org
Awamaki help Peruvian women start and run their own business, by investing in their skills and leadership. Partnering with rural Andean women’s cooperatives, their objective is to provide women with a reliable source of income and help increase their quality of life.
Awamaki partnering with cooperatives that weave, knit, spin and sew, supporting women through training in quality control, product development and technical skills, and teaching color combination, natural dye methods and sharing information that helps them navigate the international marketplace.
Awamaki produce interior and home products as well as knitted accessories, woven purses, bags, and babies clothing.
Website: https://awamaki.org