Having worked a decade in finance, both in Jamaica and on Wall Street, Anishka Clarke left the financial industry in early 2006 to pursue her real passion, interior design. She has been listed as a Top 20 African-American Interior Designer for four consecutive years and has cemented her corner of the design market after eight years in the industry.
Clarke has honed a very nature-inspired aesthetic, which compliments an evolving yet eclectic sensibility. She’s a Brooklyn resident, but Jamaican at heart, heavily influenced by a waste-not upbringing in Jamaica. Efficiency and creating “efficiently beautiful” spaces is an important part of her design for her residential and hospitality clients.
Along with her business partner Niya Bascom, Anishka has built Ishka Designs where she is the CEO and lead designer working across continents. She has been published in various media, most recently listed as a “Next Big Name” by lifestyle and home decor Lonny Magazine.
In early 2014, Clarke completed the Goldman Sachs / Tory Burch Foundation 10,000 Small Business program. In 2013, she was recognized by the Caribbean publication, Where Itz At in their first BIG awards for entrepreneurial leadership in the area of design.
Clarke is an interior design honors graduate (Summa Cum Laude) of the Fashion Institute of Technology, holds an MBA from Stern Business School, New York University, and graduated with honors from the University of the West Indies with a BSc. Degree in Accounting and Economics. A former modern dancer, she now happily practices yoga.
She cites many for inspiration. Journalist Malcolm Gladwell’s books opened her eyes with his definition of success, allowing her to measure her own in a more holistic way.
Paolo Coelho’s novel “The Alchemist” strengthened her beliefs in her own long-term goals and doing what she was meant to do.
Clarke says that over the past few years, “I have surrounded myself with likeminded design entrepreneurs, now friends, that have given me the focus and motivation at times to not only deliver but to stretch far beyond my reach.”
She is currently working on a luxury eco-conscious residential and hospitality project in Jamaica including a solar panel installation and rainwater catchment.
She says, “In the beautiful Caribbean, persons are becoming more concious of their environmental impact. Ishka Designs is pleased to be a part of a project focused on the environment. Our overarching goal is to develop similarly stunning luxury eco-resorts throughout the Caribbean.”
