FOLKLORE with Libby O’Bryan, Leigh Hilbert, & Giovanni Daina-Palermo
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About the speaker
Leigh Hilbert, Director of Development for Sew Co., Co-Founder and Education Director of Open Studio Patterns //
A self-taught leather worker, designer, educator, and entrepreneur, Leigh received her BFA in Painting and Drawing from James Madison University and moved to Asheville in 2008 after a career in the San Francisco arts and theater community - costuming for organizations such as the San Francisco Opera and Ballet and University of Berkeley, and curator and instructor at Creativity Explored, a visual art center for adults with developmental disabilities. Leigh established the Dry Goods Studios and shop in West Asheville in 2010, but now brings all her experience to the Sew Co team by helping clients bring their ideas into reality as well as spearheading our industry-tested home sew pattern company Open Studio Patterns.
Libby O’Bryan, Founder of Sew Co., Co-Founder of Rite of Passage and Open Studio Patterns //
Serial entrepreneur, Libby’s mission for all Sew Co’s enterprises is to preserve the skill of sewing. She studied patternmaking and tailoring at The Fashion Institute of Technology, business at The University of San Francisco, and conceptual art at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. After apparel production management positions with Gary Graham (NYC) and Laurenceleste (Chicago), O’Bryan witnessed many sewing jobs move overseas. Haunted by the potential extinction of skill in the US, Sew Co. was conceived and established in 2010 when invited to share a roof and a vision for progressive production with The Oriole Mill in Hendersonville, NC. By intersecting art, education, and industry, she is building a new model for sustainable textile manufacturing, now in the River Arts District of Asheville. Her art work has been exhibited at the Chicago CulturalCenter, Illinois; South Eastern Center for Contemporary Art, Cameron Art Museum, and the Penland School of Crafts Gallery, North Carolina; the Knoxville Museum of Art, Tennessee.
Giovanni Daina-Palermo, Design Director and Co-Founder of Rite of Passage //
Giovanni studied fashion design at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and is a self-taught patternmaker. With 25+ years experience in NYC’s garment district, Giovanni created patterns for Oscar de la Renta, Monse, Carolina Herrara and many others. Giovanni and Libby met while working for Gary Graham, and he moved to Asheville to join the Sew Co team in 2019, where the two founded Rite of Passage - Giovanni’s brainchild and Libby’s passion. His ability to fit and draft a pattern is sublime. His designs are an organic expression of deep introspection and respect for the built world.
Local partners
Founded in 1996, the Center for Craft (formerly The Center for Craft, Creativity & Design) is the leading organization in the United States identifying and convening craft makers, curators, and researchers, and matching them with resources, tools, and networks to advance their careers. Over the years, the Center has become a vital community resource, serving thousands of visitors annually. As a national 501c3 nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing the field of craft, the Center administers more than $300,000 in grants to those working in the craft field. www.centerforcraft.org.
This fall’s Craft Your Commerce workshops are focusing on Beyond the Studio, with an emphasis on financials and operations. This series of workshops will take you out of your studio and set you up for business health through workshops that focus on legal, insurance, and financial issues. There will also be a discussion of WNC creatives who have grown their businesses, along with Brett Binford from Mudshark Studios, who returns with an in person, in depth class on scaling and shifting your creative business. craftyourcommerce.com
As the only dedicated liberal arts institution in the University of North Carolina system, UNC Asheville kindles learning by offering students an intellectually rigorous education that builds critical thinking and workforce skills to last a lifetime. Small class size, award-winning faculty and a nationally acclaimed undergraduate research program foster innovation as well as recognition.
BLUE SPIRAL 1 presents work by exceptional artists and object makers in a light-filled, 15,000 square-foot gallery spans three floors connected by an open stairway in the heart of downtown Asheville. This spacious setting allows Blue Spiral 1 to offer considerable diversity, affording accessibility to various tastes and aesthetics.
AVLtoday is your resource for the best of what you need to know about Asheville, NC – curated, condensed and delivered to your inbox and social feeds every weekday morning.
Blue Ridge Public Radio is everything you love about public radio. BPR News offers NPR and local news coverage. BPR Classic provides classical music, NPR news and entertainment. Visit BPR.org to learn more.
We are storytellers. Adventurers. We are filmmakers who believe in the power of story. We use human connections to engage and inspire in order to create meaningful and impactful films.
Counter Culture Coffee is dedicated to finding and bringing to market the most exciting and delicious coffees in the world. We approach our work with a passion for the ideal of coffee perfection, a dedication to real sustainability, and a commitment to cutting-edge education throughout the coffee chain.
Additional details
For the theme of folklore, we look to the clothing as symbolism and metaphors in everyday ritual and ceremony. Our brand Rite of Passage celebrates the meaningful role clothing plays through out our lives. We are reinventing the legacy of “American Made” with a modern model for sustainable manufacturing in our factory Sew Co where we are practicing radical financial transparency and building a culture of worker empowerment and agency. Factory life can be fun!
