In person / Talk / Multiple Techniques
Integrating Textiles for Fashion & Interiors
There is an explosion in textile awareness and appreciation currently happening on a global scale - from MoMA to the Venice Biennale, from University and designer runways to the MET to the V&A. Come hear and participate as idea leaders and established practitioners reflect on issues around making and marketing the handmade: sourcing, production, circularity, AI impact on IP and the constant shape-shifting of contemporary style.
Host: Mary Jaeger – Textile Design: Fashion & Interiors stores.maryjaeger.com
Moderator: Leesa Hubbell - Textile Arts Journalist / Educator linkedin.com/in/leesahubbell
Panelists: experts in various textile fields, will differ at each event
Join us also for a second panel on Sunday, Sept 14, 2025 at 2:00 PM
September 7
Ragna Frodadottir - Creative Director, NYTM & Edelkoort Inc | Artist & Curator
Sandra Finkelstein - Fashion Brand & Product Strategist | Generative AI & Trend Intelligence
Jorie Johnson - Kyoto-based Fiber Artist, Educator & Innovator in Contemporary Feltmaking
Rick Davy - Director at BK Style Foundation & Fashion Week Brooklyn
From left to right: Jorie Johnson, Rick Davy, Ragna Froda
Meet the Speakers
“Generative AI doesn’t replace creativity—it accelerates it, giving us the tools to spark ideas faster, while staying grounded in the craftsmanship that gives fashion its soul.” - Sandra T. Finkelstein
Creative Strategist | Brand Builder | AI-Driven Innovator
Sandra Finkelstein is a fashion industry leader with deep experience at legacy fashion houses and later at Amazon, where she pioneered tech-driven transformation in fashion. She blends creative design with data-driven strategy, introducing on-demand product models, AI-powered design and speed-to-market innovation. She is known for scaling brands through hero products that balance creativity, profitability and sustainability.
linkedin.com/in/finkelsteinsandra
“My work focuses on the process of making, working with colors and textures, and the history and culture of symbols and patterns in textiles” - Ragna Froda
Creative Director, NYTM & Edelkoort Inc. | Artist & Curator
Ragna Froda is an Icelandic artist, curator and educator with a background in fashion and textile design. With a strong passion for textiles, innovation, and craft, the foundation of her practice is storytelling through hybrid layers of craft and technology. In the past 15 years, she has lived in New York, Berlin and Reykjavik, where she was head of Textiles at Reykjavik School of Visual Arts. She now lives in NYC where she runs her studio practice and works as the director of Edelkoort Inc. and New York Textile Month.
“Since 2004, the BK Style Foundation (BKSF) has been a driving force in building and bridging creative fashion communities in Brooklyn and beyond.” - Rick Davy
Director at BK Style Foundation & Fashion Week Brooklyn (FWBK)
Rick Davy founded BKSF in 2004 to connect Brooklyn’s explosive fashion/art talent with national and international partnerships and collaborators. Its mission to assist emerging artist-designers to hone their talent and grow their business also gives voice to social issues including human rights, HIV/AIDS awareness, sustainability initiatives, poverty, community development and training through fashion and art. Its signature event, Fashion Week Brooklyn, has become a leading international fashion showcase.
bkstyle.org @rickdavyfwbk @bkstylefoundation @fashionweekbrooklyn
“The history of man includes the history of feltmaking. I like contemporary
feltwork as it offers not only unique fabric design with seamless form, but self-expression and “Viking” protection.” - Jorie Johnson
Kyoto-based Contemporary Felt Artist | Educator & Innovator
Jorie Johnson’s imagination has been totally captured by the capability of wool fiber. With JoiRae Textiles, she continues to explore and create handmade felted woolworks for the body, the home, and the soul. Her works have been collected by the V&A London, MFA Boston and Cooper Hewitt NYC. She travels for research and teaching when the summer winds draw her away from eastern Asia.
"The core of my work is inspired by my passion for color, texture, pattern, and handcrafted details." — Mary Jaeger
Mary Jaeger's work is about modern elegance and rich traditions. Uncluttered textiles and accessories reflect her aesthetic, melding ancient Eastern and contemporary Western design. Drawing on years spent in Japan and other areas of Asia and Europe, she creates timeless collections of hand-dyed textiles for wearable accessories and interiors that seamlessly move between seasons, places, and occasions.