Former New York designer reaped the entrepreneurial seed
“I’m inspired by the landscape, flowers, and animals,” says Macon York.
Photo by Karin Strickland
Macon York followed her intuition, a drastic lifestyle pivot, and the Appalachian Trail to arrive in WNC as a rural homesteader and the proprietor of Macon York Press. Working in New York City, she did layout design for Condé Nast’s Domino Magazine and New York Magazine, and then was hired by Martha Stewart Living as an art director — where, she says, she “directed photographers, prop stylists, and food stylists while on photo shoots, and worked with editors, copy editors, and the production department.”
York says her time at these A-list glossies was “intense, creative, very fulfilling — and very stressful.”
Meanwhile, she had “heard the whisper of an entrepreneurial thing I wanted to do, and I just knew I had to go for it.”
In her spare time, she took calligraphy classes, a silkscreen workshop, and a letterpress workshop — which she found fascinating. “The feel of the printed page was magical to me, and friends and colleagues started asking if I could make their wedding invitations and other custom printing projects.” A holiday craft market at the Martha Stewart Living offices got a lot of foot traffic from tourists, and that was where York launched her products. But she says she “missed having quiet time to work slowly on my own, and was ready to be back in the South” — where she had grown up in Savannah, and earned her art degree at Sewanee.
Photo by Karin Strickland
First, though, she detoured across the south of France, doing volunteer work on organic farms with WWOOF [World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms] International and learning skills she’d eventually parlay into the life of a homesteader. Upon returning to NYC, she briefly worked at InStyle Magazine, and recalls, “The pay was great. The hours were great. There was no stress.” But while designing a page devoted to Kim Kardashian’s favorite beauty products, York realized the project didn’t align with her values — and her new path was confirmed.
Leaving the City That Never Sleeps, she started hiking the entire 2,184.4 mile Appalachian Trail, where, on the 10th day of a more than six-months-long trek, she met her future husband Luke, a professional permaculture consultant. After completing their journey, they moved to Asheville. York had visited here from NYC for the first-ever Ladies of Letterpress conference, and discovered a supportive and vibrant artistic community.
The couple, who now have a young daughter, eventually settled on four acres of land in Henderson County, where she set up her studio — outfitted with two vintage letterpress machines.
Macon York Press offers a variety of handmade paper goods featuring York’s signature artwork and original ink colors. She creates custom invitations, a popular yearly calendar, and art prints that favor earthy themes, including illustrations of flora and fauna, complete with identification, that resemble rustic field guides.
“I’m inspired by the landscape and flowers and animals, and sustainability is an important concept in everything I do — using practices that aren’t extractive or exploitative to take care of ourselves as well as the creative spirit.”
Macon York Press, Hendersonville. To learn more, visit maconyorkpress.com and @MaconYorkPress on Instagram. Work is sold at Sow True Seed and Fifth Season Gardening in Asheville, The Garden Spot in Fairview, Thyme in the Garden in Woodfin, and at dozens of other stockists in Western North Carolina and the U.S.; check the website for a full list.