Series 1
Series 01: Rules of Origin
Local makers & thinkers with distinct approaches to ideas of provenance, trade and authenticity. Spring 2014.
Makers
Sydney Mamane, Fashion Designer and Owner, Sydney’s
Father Roberto Ubertino, Founder and Executive Director, St. John the Compassionate Mission and St. John’s Bakery
Gabrielle Nasri, Vice-President, ça va de soi
Hoda Paripoush, Certified Tea Sommelier, and Director, Sloane Fine Tea Merchants
Laura Slack, Chocolatier and Pastry Chef
Trish Ewanika, Fashion Designer and Owner, EWANIKA
Farah Malik, Co-Founder, CEO and Creative Director, A Peace Treaty
Thinkers
Tarah Burke – Board Member, Fashion Takes Action, Educator and Consultant
Professor Sean Kheraj – Assistant Professor, Canadian and Environmental History, York University, and Podcaster, Nature’s Past
Host/Series Creator
Urmi Desai, Board Trustee, Textile Museum of Canada and Co-Founder/Chief Content Officer, Realosophy
With Thanks To:
Krista Boniface and Daniel Cooper for videography
Textile Museum of Canada volunteers and staff
Mar 27 | The Roots of Raw Denim @Sydney’s
Meet designer and “fabric nerd” Sydney Mamane at his sartorial Toronto menswear boutique where we chat about why Japanese denim is so coveted, what the wabi-sabi philosophy of transience and imperfection has to do with it and exactly how one makes a handmade living in North America.
Mar 29/Apr 5 | The French Method @St John’s Bakery
Exploring St. John’s commitment to the traditional French method of bread-making, we ask about France’s special relationship with bread, why organic, natural and local ingredients make a difference and why St. John’s see bread-making as restorative and healing, providing more than a salary to its employees who are in need of a helping hand up.
Apr 3/Apr 17 | The Terroir of Fabric @ça va de soi
An intimate chat with Gabrielle Nasri, part of a Montreal family that has devoted itself to the art of slow fashion and an insistence on sourcing the best fabrics from around the world for generations. Why should cotton come from Egypt and wool from Australia and Scotland? And how does partnering with a Hong Kong manufacturing family sustain ça va’s quest for quality craftsmanship?
April 10 | The Art of Tea @Sloane Fine Tea Merchants/Laura Slack Chocolates
Join Hoda Paripoush of Sloane Fine Tea Merchants and Laura Slack at the Textile Museum of Canada for a special tea and truffles tasting. Be inspired by a singular passion for the tradition and craftsmanship of individually blended teas sourced from tea gardens around the world paired with handmade chocolate. We start with a tour of From Geisha to Diva: The Kimonos of Ichimaru, and explore what authenticity means to us today in the context of some of the world’s oldest global exchanges – tea, chocolate and textiles. To celebrate this special tasting, Sloane debuts a golden-ivory Sencha green tea infused with the delicate sweetness of Japanese cherry blossoms.
April 24 | The Luxury of Tradition @A Peace Treaty/Ewanika
One of Toronto’s smartest fashion labels, EWANIKA, joins one of New York’s, A Peace Treaty, to explore a new philosophy of luxury: modernity informed by craft. We chat with Trish Ewanika about her aesthetic and what she looks for in the artisanal labels she introduces to Toronto. Trish is joined by one of her finds, A Peace Treaty co-founder Farah Malik, who shares front line stories about the challenges – and rewards – of reinvigorating the disappearing textile traditions of Asia, South America and Africa.
May 1 | Provenance and Prejudice @Textile Museum of Canada
What ideas and on-the-ground realities can help us arrive at a personal code of consumption fit for the 21st century? A salon talk featuring Toronto “makers” and “thinkers” explores how notions of origins, provenance, globalization and authenticity affect our patterns of consumption in subtle and not-so-subtle ways.
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