Virgil Abloh Dies at 41

Virgil Abloh, the Off-White CEO and artistic director of men’s wear at Louis Vuitton, recently died on November 28th, 2021 in Chicago after a two-year-long fight with cardiac angiosarcoma, a rare cancer, at the age of 41.

Virgil Abloh, the Off-White CEO and artistic director of men’s wear at Louis Vuitton, recently died on November 28th, 2021 in Chicago after a two-year-long fight with cardiac angiosarcoma, a rare cancer, at the age of 41. Abloh transformed not only what consumers want to wear, but the meaning of “fashion” itself. He won the International Designer of the Year Award at the GQ Men of the Year Awards. Abloh was known for being a genius when it comes to fashion as well as having a beautiful soul with great wisdom. He is a husband to Shannon Abloh and a father of two children Grey Abloh and Lowe Abloh. His death prompted an outburst of tributes from industry figures and close collaborators throughout the fashion, music, and art worlds.  

Abloh was born on September 30th, 1980. He grew up in the outskirts of Chicago. His mother was a seamstress and his father managed a paint company. Abloh’s mother started teaching him how to sew and he ended up really enjoying sewing and putting clothing pieces together. He eventually got his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2002. He started studying architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology. After working with architecture for two years, he shifted his focus to fashion. He entered the world of international fashion with an internship at Fendi in 2009, he worked alongside rapper Kanye West. He eventually founded the clothing line Off-White in 2012. Off-White is an Italian luxury fashion label that was shown at Paris Fashion Week shows and is sold in retail stores in Hong Kong, Tokyo, Milan, London, United Kingdom, and New York. Within no time, Off-White soon became a popular brand on everyone’s lips. From clothing and shoes to accessories and even furniture, Off-White products were flying off the shelves. “I’ve always really loved the Off-White brand, I actually have an Off-White key chain that I use for my car keys. It’s really sad that Virgil Abloh died, he was an amazing designer,” exclaimed sophomore Mere Pollitt.  

Abloh was an incredibly talented designer and will be remembered as a legend for many years to come.