Born and raised in Bronx, New York, Tomiko Fraser was the first African American to represent Maybelline New York for 8 years. Fraser has also been featured on countless billboards, magazine ads & commercials on behalf of the cosm[...]
The first Barbie doll was created in 1959 by Ruth Handler. It wasn't until 1968 that Barbie was introduced to a new friend Black "Christie". In 1980 Mattel finally released a black version of Barbie "Black Barbie". Since 1980, t[...]
Sterling St. Jacques was the world's first black male supermodel. Before Tyson Beckford, there was Sterling St. Jacques. Sterling St.Jacques was not only a model he was also a singer and dancer in the New York fashion scene in th[...]
Dorothea Towles Church was the first model to walk the runway for French designers. Dorothea Towles Church was born on July 26, 1922. After graduating from Wiley College in Marshall, Texas, Church moved to L. A where she enrol[...]
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28 Days Of Black History: Who Was The First Black Model To Sign A Contract With CoverGirl Cosmetics?
Lana Ogilvie was the first black model to sign a contract with CoverGirl cosmetics in 1992. Ogilvie was born in Toronto, Ontario. She was first discovered at a high school fashion show and went on to sign with Elite and Ford Models[...]
During London Fashion Week for Spring 2013, Philip Treacy's presentation featured all-black models during his Michael Jackson themed runway show. "The show was a homage to the African woman and their sensibility to dress up"[...]
Jan Ernst Matzeliger was an African-American inventor in the shoe industry. Matzeliger was born September 15, 1852, in Paramaribo, Suriname, to a father who was a Dutch engineer and a mother who was a black Surinamese slave. At th[...]
Scott Barrie was best known for his sexy matte jersey dresses, which were popular in the 1970s and 1980s. Scott Barrie whose real name was Nelson Clyde Barr was born in Philadelphia in January 1946. As a kid, Barrie knew he wanted t[...]
There were other models before her, but Helen Williams was the first black model to cross over into mainstream. Helen Williams was born in East Riverton, New Jersey in 1937. With her love of fashion, she began sewing her own garme[...]
“I thought it was right ... to try to do something to help my own people and to get more exposure. It was also a statement [to] the fashion industry, 'stop this discrimination, black is beautiful.' I am sick and tired of seeing only[...]