Mimi Plange is a

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

ian-born fashion designer. She moved as a child to America, where she studied architecture and fashion.

Early life

Plange was born in

Accra, Ghana Accra (; or ''Gaga''; ; Ewe: Gɛ; ) is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , had a population ...

. She moved to California with her family when she was young. She was raised in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

and

Rancho Cucamonga Rancho Cucamonga was a Ranchos of California, Mexican land grant in present-day San Bernardino County, California, given in 1839 to the dedicated soldier, smuggler and politician Tiburcio Tapia by Mexican governor Juan Bautista Alvarado. The gra ...

. She received a BA in Architecture from the

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...

and attended the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in San Francisco. After her education, she moved to New York and worked for both Patricia Fields and Rachel Roy. She and her business partner, Ibrahim Ndoye, created a fashion line ''Boudoir D'huîtres'' but she later changed it to her own name ''Mimi Plange'' in 2010. Her designs are influenced by African heritage. Her customers have included

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, businesswoman, and actress. One of the List of music artists by net worth, wealthiest musicians in the world, List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna, her vario ...

Serena Williams Serena Jameka Williams (born September 26, 1981) is an American former professional tennis player. She was ranked as the List of WTA number 1 ranked singles tennis players, world No. 1 in women's singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WT ...

and first Lady

Michelle Obama Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama ( Robinson; born January 17, 1964) is an American attorney and author who served as the first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017, being married to Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United Stat ...

. Michelle wore her A-line skirt on the ABC TV show ''

The View ''The View'' is an American talk show created by broadcast journalist Barbara Walters. , in its 28th season, the show has aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC as part of the network's ABC Daytime, daytime programming block since August ...

''. Plange was the Designer of the Year at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week South Africa. In a 2011 article in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', Plange was quoted as stating: "I want to prove to people that African fashion can't be pigeonholed.... I can compete globally." Plange does not use traditional African prints or textiles in her designs. In her Spring 2012 collection, Scarred Perfection, she referenced the body scars that Africans would use as a mode of tribal identification. Plange explains, "I am motivated by those things that make us question how we represent ourselves to other people." In 2015, she collaborated with furniture designer

Roche Bobois Roche Bobois is a French company that designs and retails furniture and home accessories. History In 1960, having become acquainted at the Copenhagen Furniture Fair, Philippe and François Roche joined forces with Jean-Claude and Patrick Cho ...

to create

Mahjong tiles Mahjong tiles () are tiles of Chinese origin that are used to play mahjong as well as mahjong solitaire and other games. Although they are most commonly tiles, they may refer to playing cards with similar contents as well. Development The ...

and sofas dressed with her materials that were made in

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km2 (105,87 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Plange, Mimi 21st-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women African-American fashion designers American fashion designers American women fashion designers Ghanaian emigrants to the United States Ghanaian fashion designers Ghanaian women fashion designers High fashion brands Living people Year of birth missing (living people) People from Ontario, California People from Rancho Cucamonga, California People from Accra