KO Designer Feature Mimi Plange

Mimi Plange and I met in Milan this past fashion week atBiffi Boutique for Vogue Fashion’s Night Out.  ITC Ethical Fashion Initiative collaborated to bring African fashion talent to the Italian fashion capital. Mimi had the most unique leather beaded dresses that caught my eye as soon as I walked in. When I had a chance to discuss the patterns cut into the leather Mimi explained to me it was inspired by the scarification designs some women in the Ghana wear, whose “markings” or adornment can be identified as belonging to a specific tribe. I found our conversation that evening so intriguing. I love when there is a story with roots that manifests in ones artistic practice.

Mimi Plange launched her modern womens wear brand in 2010. The American-Ghanaian designer is inspired by lost African civilizations that give the collection a depth of meaning. High quality craftsmanship is reflected in each Mimi Plange piece and the brand prides itself on making well-constructed and fitted clothing. The Mimi Plange woman moves in international circles and is successful, cultured and conscientious.

Mimi Plange says

“I design clothes for a woman who wears what suits her. She has nothing to prove.”

Mimi Plange’s designs have gained the seal of approval from American first-lady Michelle Obama, pop-queen Rihanna and tennis star, Serena Williams.

KO: Three words that best describe your brand:

MP: Elegant, Innovative and Distinctive

KO: Who is the designer who inspires you the most (past or present)?

MP: Elsa Schiaparelli, Azzedine Alaia and Valentino

KO: At what age did you decide you were going to design fashion?

MP: 11 years old

KO: What is your earliest “fashion” memory that evoked the feelings inside you:

MP: Watching a Valentino Fashion show with my mother.  I knew right away that, that was what I wanted to do, and it stayed with me.

KO: How did you start making fashion?

MP: In junior high and high school, I started experimenting with my clothes, turning pants into skirts, playing with contrasting colors and manipulating and wearing vintage menswear.  I loved clothes, and the ability to evoke feelings and expressions simply by my choices of adornment.  It was and still is an expression of the self.  I later went off to Fashion School and began my fashion career in New York.

KO: What is your favorite film?

MP: I definitely cannot name one film that is my favorite, I have several, but they all are either period romances or some kind of fantasy.  I LOVE movies, and some of my favorites are:

The Star Wars Trilogy, Shaka Zulu, Dangerous Liasons, Lord of the Rings (all of them), and Labyrinth. . .There are so many!!!

KO: What are the staples of your own wardrobe?

MP: A solid plain woven shirt, a pencil skirt, a full skirt,  a varsity jacket and a collar bar.

KO: What kind of music do you like to listen to while you are working?

MP: I Love all types of Music and often listen to  Dead Can Dance-Lisa Gerrard, Leikeli 47, Armand Van Helden-especially “My, My My”, Matt Darey’s “See The Sun” and one of my all time favorites, Sade

KO: Who is your favorite artist?

MP: I love the work of El Anatsui and Yinka Shonibare

KO: What decade of fashion has influenced you the most in your own designs?

MP: I am mostly interested and influenced by the beauty of body adornment and body modifications of pre colonial Africans across the Continent.  I love the way geometry, patterns and symmetry were used to decorate the body especially in West Africa and East Africa.  I am translating those arts into modern clothing for today’s woman.

KO: What advice would you give future designers?

MP: Stay true to yourself  and spend a good amount of time getting to know the different kinds of women you want to dress.  What does she like? How can you offer something new and different?  Think about your voice, and how distinctive it is in the market place-have your own point of view. Everything begins with research.  Stay in tune with what is going on in the world, it does inform design.

KO: Are you superstitious?

MP: I wouldn’t call it superstitious, but I definitely believe in Energy.  I think you are the only thing that can stop or propel you.  I think the world around you is a reflection of your beliefs.  I think you can control your experience in this world-but that doesn’t make it easy.

KO: What does your creative process look like?
MP: Researching, spending time in the library, collecting old photographs, visiting museums, listening to music, people watching, surfing the internet, and from those things, collecting thoughts and fantasies and writing notes or making little sketches.  I re-visit these notes over and over again and begin connecting ideas that seem to relate to one another.  I think about the season before and try to expand on my earlier thoughts, not create something completely new.  It’s about growing my inspiration and making the story more clear than it was before.

KO: How has your style evolved?

MP: My personal style has changed A LOT!  The more and more I design, the more I think about ease and simplicity.  I like to be adorned, but I like my silhouettes to be classic and modern.  I don’t want to spend too much time thinking about what I

am going to wear, because I’m busy.  So over the years I have adapted a uniform of a polished look that is effortless, and reflects my desire to be unique and forward.

KO: Where do you ideally see your collection in 7 years from now?

MP:Our brand will be an international lifestyle brand with multiple categories that speaks to consumers all across the globe.  I see us partnering with artists we love and continuing to share our story by exposing the beauty of lost African Civilizations in the Modern World.

Dance in the sun from Mimi Plange on Vimeo.