Gesho Studio aims to expand the artistic possibilities of hand-drawn clothes, exploring new techniques, imagery, and a broader range of materials. Each piece is one-of-a-kind, illustrated on hand-sourced and repaired vintage clothing. Conceived as both a label and an art series, Gesho offers a counterpoint to a fashion landscape dominated by unethical manufacturing and planned obsolescence.

Clair Gunther studied illustration and printmaking at Parsons, drawing and painting clothes in her free time. After graduating in 2019 she started working for Bode, then a virtually unknown brand. She helped to develop Bode’s Senior Cords, a line of clothing based on a Purdue University tradition that lasted from 1904 to the early 70’s where the senior class decorated corduroy suiting with hand-drawn artwork representing their fraternities, sororities, clubs, and studies. Clair continued to evolve the aesthetic of the line each season, illustrating clothing and upholstery and drawing hundreds of custom pieces. In August, 2022, she left the Bode team to start her own label, Gesho. 

Gesho is named after a bitter bark that provides the signature flavor of Tej, a honey wine made in homes throughout Ethiopia. After trying home brewed Tej in Holland, Clair has been perfecting her own home brew from her apartment in Ridgewood.