Virgil Abloh: Louis Vuitton Menswear Designer and Off-White Founder Dies

Virgil Abloh was an American fashion designer, architect and DJ who bridged the worlds of streetwear and luxury fashion. Born on September 30, 1980, in Rockford, Illinois, to Ghanaian immigrant parents, he trained as a civil engineer and architect.

Abloh interned at Fendi in 2009 alongside Kanye West and became creative director of West's agency, Donda. He founded the label Off-White in 2013, known for its quotation marks design motif. In 2018 he was named artistic director of Louis Vuitton menswear, the first person of African descent to lead the line, and he was named to the Time 100 that year.

In 2019 he held a solo exhibition, Figures of Speech, at Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art, and he also collaborated with IKEA and Nike. He married Shannon Sundberg in 2009, and they had two children. He kept a diagnosis of a rare cancer, cardiac angiosarcoma, private for two years. He died in Chicago on November 28, 2021, at age 41.

Achievements: Founded Off-White (2013), artistic director of Louis Vuitton menswear (2018), Time 100 (2018), exhibition Figures of Speech (2019).

Birth: September 30, 1980 - Rockford, Illinois.

Profession: Fashion designer, architect and DJ.

Interesting Facts: He was also a DJ and released music. He had a degree in civil engineering and a master's in architecture.