Press

SILKAVA is a design-led, collectible silk lifestyle brand. Designed in Chicago, produced in Suzhou, China. For press inquiries, image requests, or interview bookings, please reach out to press@silkava.com.

Download the Press Kit
Download the Fact & Pricing Sheet
Download the Image Pack

About SILKAVA

Based in Chicago, SILKAVA is a design-led, collectible silk lifestyle brand founded by award-winning artist Emma Shi.

The brand's debut Origin Series takes the story of silk itself as its subject. Its motifs, the silkworm, the mulberry leaf, the cocoon, are rendered as original cut-paper silhouettes in a signature palette of cobalt, black and white, and green, a visual language originally developed by the brand. Every order includes a collectible Origin Series card, a small printed object designed to be kept, turning a silk accessory into something collectible.

SILKAVA was founded by Emma Shi, an award-winning artist and founder born in Suzhou, China, the historic home of silk, who returned to the material she grew up with after it became part of her own life again as an adult. Trained with an MFA in film and animation and an MBA from Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, she designs SILKAVA's motifs herself and founded SILKAVA. Every piece is made from Grade 6A, 22-momme mulberry silk, certified to the OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100. Designed in Chicago, produced in Suzhou.

The brand is available in the United States at silkava.com and on TikTok Shop.


Emma Shi, Founder

Emma Shi is the founder and designer of SILKAVA, a design-led, collectible silk lifestyle brand built on the belief that silk should be worn with intention. She was born in Suzhou, China, the city at the historic heart of silk, where she grew up around the craft, including raising silkworms as a child, an experience that now sits at the center of her brand's Origin Series.

An artist and award-winning animator by training, Emma holds a BFA in animation, an MFA in film and animation, and an MBA from Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management. She is an award-winning animator whose animated short film has screened at more than a dozen international film festivals, spent nearly a decade as a designer and animator before founding SILKAVA in 2026.

SILKAVA began with a question she kept returning to: can an everyday object become something worth keeping. The brand's debut Origin Series answers it with original cut-paper silhouettes, drawn by hand, on pieces made from Grade 6A, 22-momme mulberry silk. 


Selected Recognition

In the Press

·       Art series Essence was shown in Dittmar Gallery's annual community exhibition. Featured in The Daily Northwestern: “Dittmar Gallery hosts community show ‘Metamorphosis,’ explores themes of evolution and transformation.” (2025)


Exhibitions

·       Metamorphosis: The Art of Transformation, Dittmar Memorial Gallery, Northwestern University (2025)

·       By Design: Unlocking the Creative Advantage Conference, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University (2025)


Awards & Screenings

·       The Star Fishing Boy (animated short)
- First Place, College Animation Category, MY HERO International Short Film Festival (2014). 
- Screened at more than a dozen international film festivals, including the California International Animation Festival, Fargo Film Festival, Myrtle Beach International Film Festival, Winter Film Awards, and Buffalo Niagara International Film Festival (Finalist).

·       Certificate of Artistic Achievement, Luxembourg Art Prize (2020)


Fast Facts

  • Brand: SILKAVA, a design-led, collectible silk lifestyle brand
  • Founded: 2026, United States
  • Founder: Emma Shi, award-winning artist, founder
  • Headquarters: Chicago, Illinois, USA
  • Designed in: Chicago area. Produced in: Suzhou, China
  • Debut collection: the Origin Series, with motifs of the silkworm, the mulberry leaf, and the cocoon, drawn as cut-paper silhouettes
  • Materials: Grade 6A, 22-momme mulberry silk. Certified to the OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100, Cert. No. 21.HCN.68112, Hohenstein
  • With every order: an Origin Series collectible card. The first 100 orders include a hand-numbered, signed Founder's Edition card
  • Available: silkava.com, United States
  • Press contact: press@silkava.com


Download

The full press kit is available in three parts:

1. Press Kit PDF – Includes all written materials:

  • About SILKAVA
  • Founder's Story: The Journey to Silk
  • The Design Story
  • The Debut Collection
  • Why Now: The Hollow Middle of Silk
  • Product & Brand Fact Sheet
  • Founder Bio
  • Founder Quotes

2. Fact & Pricing Sheet – A one-page document outlining product specifications and pricing.

3. Image Pack – Featuring:

  • Founder portraits
  • Product photography
  • Logos

Usage & Contact
Images may be used for editorial coverage with credit to SILKAVA. For press inquiries, image requests, or interview bookings, please reach out to press@silkava.com.