Donna Dove
Email: donna@donnadove.com
Phone: 212 865-9332
DONNA DOVE is a revolutionary fashion designer, artist and entrepreneur based in Harlem, New York. Blessed with a keen and authentic understanding of art, through her ability to reach back
to her origins for inspiration and her syncretism of fashion design and the fine arts, Donna sees her creativity as a divine process. Her noteworthy `Sugar Cane Collection™ encompass the color and synergy of the Caribbean, juxtaposed with the energy of New York. The result is a stylish melange of men shirts featuring original drawings and flowing cotton voile pieces created for the woman of distinction. Donna has extended her fashion line into an original home furnishing collection including; shower curtains, pillows, lampshades and place mats all bearing the signature Donna Dove motif of creative artwork.
Born in Trinidad, West Indies, Donna Dove migrated to the United States with her family during the 1970s. However, much of her inspiration comes from her homeland where her mother was a seamstress, and growing up, Donna developed the hobby of making clothes for her dolls. Furthermore, she admired her five older sisters, always sewing and designing clothes for them with supervision from her mother. "Growing up in Trinidad, sewing was really a business for her, while it was a hobby for me in the beginning," recalls the designer.
Donna took classes in painting in Trinidad where she developed her skills in the fine arts. In New York, Donna attended the Fashion Institute of Technology where she studied fashion design with a specialty in sportswear. Over the course of her career, she has worked with top designers, editors, photographers, stylists, make-up artists and catalogue publishers. Dove admits that another source of inspiration comes from self admitted `colorful lifestyle. "I have lots of interesting and creative people around me.” Donna has traveled to interesting places other than her homeland, including the historic cities of Europe and exotic islands in the Caribbean. I have drawn inspiration from all of those places. Trinidad’s Carnival has a strong influence on all of her collections and she refers to the process as a “mass camp.”
A typical Donna Dove creation is uniquely outstanding because Donna incorporates illustration and fashion together, predominantly through hand-drawing her artwork into the clothing. She is able to blend both the fine arts and fashion because she strongly believes that there is no real distinction between the two. "Everything is fused together, everything is one to create my signature look."
Donna has been the curator of two wearable art showcases in New York City, (Apollo Theatre in Harlem, New York and the P.C.O.G Gallery New York). She has shown her collection in several fashion events including Guyana Fashion Weekend, Trinidad Fashion Weekend, The Black Designer showcase at The Museum of New York, and the Jamaican Mustard Seed Benefit Fashion Show at the New York Hilton. She has been featured in major publications like Sister 2 Sister Magazine, Art Business News, New York Times, Amsterdam News and The New York Carib News. She understands how fashion is an art in itself and her work speaks for itself.