On September 11, the Kravet showroom opened its doors to more than 50 New York School of Interior Design students, members, and supporters of the Asian American Pacific Islander Design Alliance (AAPIDA) who were there to see their beautiful archives, with a display highlighting Asian fabrics. With food, drinks, and conversation flowing, the showroom was filled with excitement as NYSID celebrated the launch of the first AAPIDA student chapter in the country.

AAPIDA is an organization and collective that engages, promotes, and empowers Asians, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders working within the home and design industries to foster visibility, collaboration, and representation industry-wide. Their goals are to mobilize, empower, and engage AAPI professionals in the home and design industries and beyond, to enact change by catalyzing the creative energy and talent of peers through advocacy, awareness, collaboration, community, dialogue, and mentorship.

The student chapter began as a conversation between NYSID student Carissa Kim Pintello (MFA1) and President David Sprouls in 2023. A year later, with the guidance of one of the founding members of AAPIDA and a member of NYSID’s Board of Trustees, Young Huh, AAPIDA x NYSID came to fruition.

“Before Carissa approached us about starting a student chapter, I had heard good things about AAPIDA from Young Huh and NYSID alumni, so I was thrilled NYSID students were taking the initiative to bring AAPIDA to NYSID,” says Sprouls.

The student chapter board consists of Pintello, serving as president; Carmen Cruz as vice president; Swagatika Rath as secretary; and Phyllis Lam as treasurer. With support from other AAPIDA founders, such as Jessica Davis and Go Kasai, the event turned out to be a huge success.

Treasures of the Kravet Archive

The night began with lots of mingling before Scott Kravet, principal of Kravet Inc., generously shared the fascinating history of Kravet, giving the students and members an inside look at how the company’s incredible archives came to be and evolved over the years. The crowd let out “wows” as they were led to two center tables covered in beautiful fabrics. On the first table were stencils made from mulberry bark from the 19th century. Kravet explained that mulberry bark was highly popular in Southeast Asia and that it would be soaked in water, mashed into a paste and made into paper. This would then be hand-carved to create a unique stencil upon which liquids such as persimmon juice would be used to create patterns as it dried in the sun, causing the rich brown color seen on the fabrics.

On the next table were textiles that showed beautiful Indonesian batiks, Indian block prints and Japanese embossing and embroidery. The one piece that made everyone talk was an embossed Japanese print of a pagoda in the middle of mountains. These prints often depicted scenes of landscapes and nature, with high-end, luxurious versions featuring embossed block prints to enhance texture. Key areas of the embossed patterns were then highlighted with gold or silver leaf paint, capturing the movement of light as it played across the surface.

The Impact on Students & Professionals

“Attending the AAPIDA x NYSID launch party means so much to me. As an immigrant from Taiwan, I find comfort in knowing there are people dedicated to making our industry more equitable.” Averie Chiu (MFA1), a student who moved to the U.S. about two years ago said, “Seeing individuals from diverse backgrounds and ethnicities come together to support this movement is incredibly empowering. Hearing Asian interior design pioneers share their experiences in overcoming industry bias toward our community is especially inspiring. It gives me hope and empowers me to take pride in my roots, with the aspiration to one day give back to this community. I see a beautiful community forming—one that fosters understanding and shares our cultures and heritages with the world through design and meaningful conversation.”

Meanwhile, Lina Deeb Forrester, the Kravet archivist, said, “Working with the AAPIDA community is really a big part of my soul. Growing up Middle Eastern, I never found other people like me, and especially in the global climate that we are in now, it is important for us to stay together.”

Get Involved

With a lineup of exciting AAPIDA events on the horizon, there are more opportunities than ever for students to connect, collaborate, and learn from one another. Whether students are looking to deepen their understanding of design through a cultural lens or simply want to engage with peers who share a passion for inclusive design, now is the perfect time to get involved.

NYSID invites all students to join and attend upcoming AAPIDA events, participate in discussions, and take an active role in shaping a more diverse and innovative future for interior design.

To become a member of AAPIDA x NYSID, click here.

Students can also learn more about the national AAPIDA by visiting the website.

If you have additional questions, feel free to email aapida@nysid.com.

Contributed by Swagatika Rath, a Second-Year MFA1 student and Secretary of AAPIDA at NYSID.