Mary Jane Marcasiano kicked off our first Knowledge Friday of the Summer! Marcasiano's creative career spans over 40 years; from 80's Soho fashion designer to today's collaborations with performing artists. A known style icon, Marcasiano is a community mainstay due to her work in costume design, fashion, and textiles as well as her interest in culture and institutional change. Marcasiano discussed the process of being a designer and using her "cultural antennae" to stay relevant, and how the process of reinvention continues to invigorate her life and her creativity.

Having established her design company in 1977, Marcasiano currently focuses her design work on costumes for dance, film, theater, and for GRAMMY award-winning singer Angelique Kidjo. Along with design, Marcasiano has a passion for activism and philanthropy, in 2007, she created the made with Love Project, dedicated to supporting women's crafts and children's aid programs in Brazil and Africa. Currently, Marcasiano serves as Director of Strategic Partnerships to Cinema Tropical, a non-profit promoting Latin American cinema in the US, and as Director of Development to IMPACT Repertory Theater, a program for under-resourced youth in Harlem.