Hand-illustrated silk scarves made in New York.
For cultural institutions, boutique hotels, wedding collections, and people who want something made with real intention.
Silk scarves designed for places with a story
Every scarf in this studio starts as a painting. I draw it by hand, find the story inside it, and find a way to make it carry something real: a collection, a place, a feeling worth wearing.
Mali is a design studio based in New York. I work with cultural institutions, wedding planners, boutique hotels, and private collections that want something made specifically for them. I also create original surface patterns and illustrations for fashion labels, stationery brands, and interior studios that want artwork that didn't come from a stock library.
The Museum of the Cathedral of Santo Domingo has been selling my work in their gift shop for over a year. That's the kind of partnership I'm here to build.
Custom Silk Scarves
I research your collection, your story, and what makes your place worth visiting. Then I draw something that could only belong to you. Commissions start at $2,500 for institutions, $1,800 for weddings and events.
Surface & Textile Design
Original repeat patterns and illustrations for fashion labels, stationery brands, and interior studios. Every file is delivered production-ready. I retain copyright; you get the usage rights we agree on.
Wholesale Collection
Six units minimum, mix designs and sizes freely. Every scarf comes with the story behind it written and ready for your shop floor. I work with a small number of wholesale partners.
Retail Scarves
Every scarf starts as a hand painting made in my New York studio. Alma Tropical is Venezuela. Metamorphosis is about change. Martinis and Pomodoro is just beautiful and fun. All of them ship worldwide.
Slideshow
Custom & Wholesale
If you have a story worth wearing, I want to hear it.
I make custom silk scarves for institutions, hotels, boutiques, and events that want something designed specifically for them. Not adapted from a catalog. Made for you, from your collection, your place, your story.
I also offer wholesale supply of my existing designs for gift shops and retailers who want something beautiful and original on their shelves.
If you're not sure which fits your situation, the best first step is a short conversation.
Silk Scarves
Meet the Artist Behind Mali
Hi, I'm Barbara.
I'm a Venezuelan architect and artist living in New York. I started drawing as a child and never really stopped. I founded Mali because I wanted to make things that carry real stories into the world, not just beautiful objects.
Every design in this studio begins as a hand-painted illustration made in my New York studio. I draw the orchids, the macaws, the butterflies. I research the collections before I commission anything. I'm the person you talk to from the first conversation to the final piece.
That's the studio and that's what I'm building.
Latest from the studio
What It Means to Commission Original Art for a Museum or Cultural Institution
When a museum gift shop works well, it is one of the best things in the world. The right object at the end of a visit. Something that carries the...
What It Means to Commission Original Art for a Museum or Cultural Institution
What It Means to Commission Original Art for a Museum or Cultural Institution
I'm working on something new.
A new collection inspired by the Renaissance frescoes I found walking through New York with my best friend. It's called Alla Grottesca and it's not out yet. If you want to see it before anyone else does, leave your email here.