About

Photo by Jesse Dittmar

It all started in 1977 when my parents decided to travel from Ann Arbor, Michigan, through Mexico down to South America. The plan was to end up in Argentina. En route, they found themselves on Lake Atitlán in the Western Highlands of Guatemala and were completely enchanted. They ended up renting a little house in the indigenous village of Santa Catarina Palopó on the shores of the lake, and that was where they stayed the rest of the summer. South America, it turned out, would have to wait.

I grew up in a home filled with the Guatemalan textiles that they had collected on that first trip and others that followed. The seed for Archive NY was thus planted in my young mind.  Fast forward some three decades. My love of textiles found me gravitating back toward those rich and colorful designs. That’s when I found myself booking a trip to Guatemala to research traditional motifs and weaving methods. Soon thereafter, Archive New York was born.

The design process begins by hunting down antique and increasingly rare fabric samples, especially from areas where weaving traditions are dying out. We then connect with artisans in those locations to begin weaving the designs.

Our philosophy is to honor the integrity of the Mayan culture & heritage by carefully preserving each original textile, pattern, and design while committing ourselves to Fair Trade principles.

I hope you enjoy our journey. Please reach out if you have any questions.

Amira Marion
Founder of Archive New York​
   
About The Designer:
Amira Marion was born and raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She attended Parsons School of Design in New York and Paris. After graduating, she worked for John Patrick Organic and designed accessories for Madewell 1937 before heading back for another stint in Paris to learn the language and begin research on a project that would turn into ARCHIVE NEW YORK.