Duro Olowu: Nigerian Art Curator And Fashion Designer

by Duke Magazine

Duro Olowu is a Nigerian-British fashion designer. He is an art enthusiast who mixes patterns with textiles to carve out a unique niche for himself. His growing up in Lagos and holidays in Geneva (Switzerland) and London (United Kingdom) have availed him so much opportunity to have a touch of cultural diversities.

Olowu started his career in fashion in the late ‘90s when he delved into women’s wear label, ‘Olowu Golding’. He later launched a his own women’s wear label which began with Spring/Summer 2005 collection. With his continuing astute production of fashion edifice, his collection ‘Duro’ became an international hit after being noticed and made publicized by American Vogue editor Sally Singer and Julie Gilhart of Barneys New York, leading to it being appraised the dress of the year by both British and American Vogue.

Olowu went on to win the 2005 New Designer of the Year at the British Fashion Awards, the only designer to do so without having a catwalk show. Also in 2009, he was named the Best International Designer by the African Fashion Awards, and received one of six nominations for the Swiss Textile Federation’s coveted prize of €100,000. Duro Olowu is a designer with great influences as he won the heart of former United States First Lady Michelle Obama in the area of fashion and design, was employed to decorate the Vermeil Room in the White House. He decorated the room during Barack Obama’s presidency in the US. He said that he is sure Michelle’s visitors will be as delighted as she is when they visit the room during the holiday season

In speaking with Vogue magazine, the Nigerian said that his aim is to create good pieces that people would always engage and never be tired of.

“My idea is to create a beautiful feast for the eyes, reminiscent of a warm and joyful season, filled with international treasures and signature fabrics,” he spoke of his work in the White House room. The composition of the room was comprised of 8-foot-tall Christmas trees wrapped with vintage African fabrics encrusted with shiny balls. There were also patchworks at strategic places in the room. Olowu was included in the 2019 edition of the Powerlist, ranking the 100 most influential Black Britons.

In most recent years, the Kent University Law graduate began curating contemporary art exhibitions in galleries and museums starting with his revered  exhibitions, ‘Material’ (2012) and ‘More Material’ (2014) at Salon94 gallery in New York. He also curated his first museum exhibition in 2016, the critically acclaimed, ‘Making & Unmaking’ at the Camden Arts Centre in London. Subsequently in 2020, Olowu curated his second museum exhibition, ‘Duro Olowu: Seeing Chicago’, parading his selection of over 350 artworks from both the collection of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago as well as other institutions. This marked the first time The Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago has hired a guest art curator in its fifty years of establishment.

Currently, Olowu is a member of the board of trustees of The Royal Academy of Arts.

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