Heartbreaking news about Virgil Abloh, and an ode to his impact

Virgil Abloh’s exhibition Figures of Speech. Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, Illinois

How Virgil Abloh inspired young fashion designers and students

On Sunday, Nov. 28, American fashion designer Virgil Abloh passed away from a rare form of cancer called cardiac angiosarcoma. At age 41, Abloh was confirmed dead by his family on his Instagram account.

After battling his diagnosis in private for over 2 years, going through multiple tough treatments and maintaining his various fashion institutes, Instagram pages were flooded with sorrowful posts this week about Abloh’s death and just how much he transformed modern street fashion.

Abloh was an inspiration to many young fashion designers, models and African-American entrepreneurs as he made his mark on the fashion industry and ensured all of his followers that it is in fact, okay to make mistakes.

“I look at him as a pioneer of our culture, our generation, the reason kids feel comfortable with themselves,” Louis Vuitton VIP member and fashion connoisseur Silvana Suder said. “His passion and extensive creative visions through fashion, culture, art and music will continue to inspire.”

Abloh was born in Rockford, Illinois in 1980 into a family of Ghanian immigrants. In his early life, he learned how to sew from his mother who was a seamstress and, later on, he received his master’s in architecture from Illinois Institute of Technology.

Abloh always had an artistic eye growing up. While he was studying architecture, his interest in fashion sparked, and he began to design t-shirts and write for a well-known fashion blog.

“As a young designer and entrepreneur, Virgil has been incredibly inspirational to me,” said fashion student and designer/founder of Dyenamic Linda Hachim. “One thing he always said was, ‘Everything I do is for my 17-year-old self,’ and that’s something that I really resonate with because I got my first experience in the fashion industry when I was 17.”

After receiving his master’s degree in architecture, he was set up with the opportunity to intern for Fendi in 2009. That year, Abloh met rapper Kanye West in a Chicago print shop working on his own designs. After meeting, West and Abloh began collaborating and building their brands.

Abloh’s designs caught the eye of Louis Vuttion CEO Michael Burke and from that point on, a world of opportunities opened for him.

Abloh was appointed creative director of several of Kanye West’s projects such as his creative agency, Donda, and album with Jay-Z, Watch the Throne. Soon enough, Abloh founded his first fashion house/brand, Off-White, based out of Milan, Italy in 2013 which became a major success across the globe and in the industry in general.

Not only did he create a new empire with Off-White, but continued to design for several other companies and causes as well.

He collaborated with Nike re-designing shoes, designed an IKEA collection, worked with Takashi Murikami, helped artist, Jenny Holzer create a line that emphasized positive aspects of culture and internationalism and even aided the design process for Planned Parenthood t-shirts for the Women’s March in Washington.

Young designer/founder of clothing brand, Mind Liquid, Sam Gregor said, “Virgil Abloh just brought so many new concepts to fashion which inspired me as a designer so much. He worked for so many amazing causes and movements which I want to do someday too.”

Abloh truly brought others up along with him as he climbed his way up in the fashion industry. Within the same year as creating Off-White, Abloh was appointed artistic director of Louis Vuitton menswear, making him the first-ever African-American to lead a designer brand’s menswear line.

This set the path for many young designers of color to follow their dreams and truly see that despite their backgrounds, their dreams really can manifest with hard work and precision, just like Abloh’s did.

Hachim claimed, “I can relate to Abloh because both of his parents moved here from Ghana, and my parents moved here from Algeria. It’s not only that, but it’s wanting to make use of the fact that our parents moved here to give us greater opportunities, and I want to make the most out of that. Abloh, along with my parents, really showed me that I am so lucky to live in a country where I am able to build my own brand as a young woman on my own.”

Not only did Abloh pave the way for creatives of color, but for young designers and entrepreneurs in general. Current fashion student, Lily Haron said, “He inspired me in a way by demonstrating that young people can also enjoy designing and getting involved in the industry which I really appreciate.”

Abloh had an incredibly revolutionary mind and continued to break boundaries with his innovative ideas up until his passing.

“He was such a big influence for me,” Gregor said. “He taught me that making mistakes is okay; that if you aren’t making any mistakes, you must not be doing it right. Creating is all about trials and tribulations as well as perseverance.”

He continued to curate several runway shows for a variety of brands and broke barriers in streetwear, menswear and fashion in general.

Student and designer/founder of clothing brand, Island Coast, Brandon Davis declared, “Friends of his said that he would do 10 days of work in a single day. Hearing that inspired me to levels unimaginable and runs through my mind every day. He’s the reason I put so much time and effort into my brand.”

Abloh was a visionary and his legacy will continue to live on as he has touched the hearts of a multitude of young creatives all over the world,” Davis said. “The influence and inspiration that Virgil Abloh had, and still has, on my life is unfathomable.” 

Sending light and love to Virgil Abloh’s family and friends. Rest in peace.

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