by Elena Plumb

George Floyd’s May 26th murder sparked a worldwide discussion not only about police brutality, but also about systemic racism in industries across the nation. Fashion was no exception.

Some of the street style trends we know and love, such as bucket hats, baggy pants, and hoop earrings, were appropriated from Black culture and only deemed “trendy” when white people adopted the styles. This marginalization of the Black community extends beyond street culture and into the world of high fashion. Major fashion houses such as Prada and Gucci have been known to promote a culture of racism in their work environments, barring Black creatives from assuming the same power and status as their white counterparts. During this national reckoning, we as consumers have the power to uplift the innovators who have been sidelined by this historically racist industry. Meet—or reintroduce yourself—to these Black designers, models and creatives who have revolutionized both fashion and beauty.

Madam C.J. Walker

Born on a cotton plantation to two former slaves, Madam C.J. Walker rose out of poverty and became the first female self-made millionaire in America. After developing a scalp disorder that caused severe hair loss in her 20s, Walker began experimenting with several restorative remedies. With some guidance from Black hair care specialist Annie Turnbo Malone, Walker’s wildly popular “Walker Method” was born. The method involved a pomade to rehabilitate damaged hair and a “hot comb” to style it. This “hot comb” soon evolved into the first straightening and curling irons, making Walker the innovator behind two of the world’s most widely-used beauty tools.

Ann Lowe

From her humble southern dress shop to the runway at Paris Fashion Week, Ann Lowe persevered through the horrors of the Jim Crow Era and became one of the most prominent designers of her time. Her feminine dresses were a symbol of status and elitism for women across the nation, even catching the attention of style icon Jacqueline Bouvier. Lowe’s crowning achievement was designing Bouvier’s dress for her wedding to John F. Kennedy, a dress which Elle Magazine describes as “one of the most iconic wedding-day looks of all time.” She was one of the first Black female designers to make a name for herself, and she did it all during a period of intense discrimination toward the Black community. Today, Lowe’s historic designs are displayed in the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Patrick Kelly

Like other Black designers attempting to jumpstart their brands in the Jim Crow South, Patrick Kelly’s professional advancement was hindered by white fashion executives. As soon as the dean of the Parsons School of Design saw that the talented Kelly was not an Irishman from the northeast but a young Black man from rural Alabama, his scholarship was revoked. Labels throughout New York City rejected Kelly’s job applications on the basis of his race, but after years of struggling to crack the American job market, he found success on Parisian runways. His creative, theatrical designs set off a movement within Parisian couture and his idea of fashion as a medium for activism is gaining momentum. Just as many Black rappers reclaim the n-word through their music, Patrick Kelly reclaimed racist imagery through his fashion. When he featured a racist caricature in his designs, he was both challenging the stereotype and redefining it. He became the first American to be inducted into the Chambre Syndicale, the regulatory commission of French fashion.

Dapper Dan

Though his label was once a subject of controversy, Dapper Dan serves as inspiration for some of the biggest fashion houses today. Recognizing the marketability of the designer logo, he began utilizing them in his clothes without seeking the designer’s permission. Lawsuits ran his Harlem shop out of business in 1992, but Dapper Dan is still noted as a curator of hip hop fashion. The mania surrounding logos and the association between luxury fashion and street culture are results of his influence. Today, companies that once litigated Dapper Dan, such as Gucci and Louis Vuitton, pay homage to his legendary pieces by releasing streetwear garments decked out with their logos.

Bethann Hardison

The 1973 “Battle of Versailles” clash between American and French designers is regarded as the show that put American fashion on the map. Its emphasis on diverse casting also helped launch the careers of several non-white models, including Bethann Hardison. Upset by the historically homogeneous casts of models on both American and European stages, she formed the Black Girls Coalition in 1989 to uplift Black models. Hardison renewed the coalition in 2013 with the help of models Iman and Naomi Campbell, demanding the fashion governing bodies in each major fashion capital to feature greater diversity in their upcoming fashion weeks. While representation is far from proportionate, there was a slight uptick in non-white models on the runway in 2014. Brands are listening and reacting to the pleas for diversity, and this is largely thanks to Hardison’s campaigns.

Tracy Reese

If Tracy Reese’s name sounds familiar, that’s because she was one of the most popular female ready-to-wear designers of the 2000s. Soon after graduating from the Parsons School of Design, she debuted her namesake collection in 1997, combining classy silhouettes with bold prints and hues. Reese’s designs encapsulated the spirit of the confident woman, drawing in customers such as Michelle Obama and Taylor Swift. Recently, Reese took a step back from the runway and moved to her hometown of Detroit, Mich., where she launched her brand Hope for Flowers. She has become a pioneer for sustainability in fashion, using ethically-sourced and biodegradable fabrics in her clothing, creating smaller collections to reduce pollution, and donating 10% of profits to waste management organization Detroit Dirt.

Virgil Abloh

The Chicago-born designer completed a degree in Civil Engineering before entering the world of fashion alongside Kanye West. Virgil Abloh set his career in motion by interning with Fendi and serving as West’s Creative Director, but soon he began undertaking his own endeavors. His multimedia brand Off-White revolutionized streetwear, infusing it with luxury and toying with more architectural and creatively engineered silhouettes. Abloh became an international sensation and landed the position of Artistic Director at Louis Vuitton, making history as the first Black American to lead a French luxury brand.

Telfar Clemens

Gender-neutral fashion was on the rise in 2018, but designer Telfar Clemens was experimenting with androgyny long before the trend gained traction. Clemens’s designs took traditionally masculine garments and incorporated traditionally female elements, or vice-versa. He also used design elements like zippers in an unorthodox manner, selling tops with zip-off sleeves. Apart from disrupting gender expectations, Clemens seeks to erase the stigma that only people of a certain socioeconomic status can rock designer fashion. In 2017, he designed the uniform for White Castle employees, but then sold these fast-food uniforms in stores for hundreds of dollars.

Kerby Jean-Raymond

Kirby Jean-Raymond views the runway as a platform for social change. Before working with some of the biggest names in fashion, such as Marchesa and Marc Jacobs, Raymond pursued a law degree at Brooklyn Law School. However, his passion for politics seeped into his future fashion designs, making his collections particularly thought-provoking. Jean-Raymond founded his label Pyer Moss in 2013, and just three years later, he presented one of New York Fashion Week’s most memorable runway showcases. As a 12-minute clip addressing the Black Lives Matter movement played, models sported his clean, modern athleticwear printed with Eric Garner’s last words “I can't breathe” and the names of other police brutality victims. Jean-Raymond fearlessly addressed one of the nation’s most pressing issues in his fashion, inspiring Vogue to call Pyer Moss “one of the most important shows on the New York Fashion Week calendar.”

Rihanna

Rihanna ruled the 2000s with her catchy R&B music, but since Fenty Beauty’s launch in 2017, she is dominating the beauty world as well. Fenty has become a beacon of inclusivity in a historically exclusive industry. Her debut makeup collection consisted of 40 shades meant to match the skin tones of even the darkest and palest consumers. Model Nneoma Anosike praised this decision, saying, “The beauty world for people of color has welcomed yet another brand that goes into understanding that we melanins have different undertones and shades. . . We have amazing brands representing us, yes, but not enough.” This emphasis on inclusivity extends to her lingerie collection in collaboration with Savage. The line’s fashion show celebrated the sexuality of women of all shapes and sizes, whether black, white, skinny, curvy, cis, trans, able-bodied, or disabled. In every facet of design Rihanna explores, she stays true to her motto that “every woman deserves to feel sexy.”

Black Designers, Models and Creatives Who Revolutionized Fashion and Beauty