Prabal Gurung
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Prabal Gurung ( ne, प्रवल गुरुङ) (born 1979) is a
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
–born Nepalese–American
fashion designer Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fashion in ...
based in New York City.


Early life and education

Gurung was born on March 31, 1979, in Singapore to Nepali parents and raised in
Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...
, Nepal. Family members as mentioned by Prabal in his social media and interviews include his mother, older brother and older sister. His mother, Durga Rana, was a former boutique owner. His older brother, Pravesh Rana Gurung, is an Indian film director, and his older sister, Kumudini Shrestha, is a teacher and social worker. He went to a Jesuit school, St. Xavier's School in
Jawalakhel Jāwalākhel ( ne, जावलाखेल) is a subdivision of Lalitpur in Nepal. It is located 2 km from the ancient city centre Pātan, one of the three great capitals of Nepal until the 18th century. It derives its name from Jaulakhel ...
. Before entering the fashion world, he earned a bachelor's degree in hotel management from the National Council of Hotel Management, Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition. He had always been interested in clothing and colors and was introduced to the world of fashion when he moved to one of the biggest cities in India, New Delhi. There, he attended the National Institute of Fashion Technology. He held apprenticeships at many local fashion and production houses and worked under Manish Arora, during which time he was able to grow as a designer. Gurung has stated, “From the brilliance of Bollywood to the fabrics, embroideries, and textures you can find at Chandni Chowk to the fast-paced streets of Mumbai, it’s an incredible place.” Eventually, he received an opportunity to assist stylists in London and Melbourne during fashion shows for international print media. This opened up more doors for Gurung to expand beyond Asia and make his mark around the world.


Career

In 1999 Gurung moved from New Delhi to New York City where he attended Parsons School of Design and studied under an internship with
Donna Karan Donna Karan (, born Donna Ivy Faske), also known as "DK", is an American fashion designer and the creator of the Donna Karan New York and DKNY clothing labels. Early life Karan was born Donna Ivy Faske to mother Helen "Queenie" Faske (née Rabin ...
. Following an apprenticeship with
Cynthia Rowley Cynthia Rowley (born July 29, 1958) is an American fashion designer based in the Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Early life and education Rowley is a native of Barrington, Illinois a northwestern suburb of Chicago. She is one of three ...
, he worked with
Bill Blass William Ralph Blass (June 22, 1922 – June 12, 2002) was an American fashion designer. He was the recipient of many fashion awards, including seven Coty Awards and the Fashion Institute of Technology's Lifetime Achievement Award (1999). Early ...
for five years as a design director. His own collection PRABAL GURUNG was released during Fashion Week in February 2009 with the FLAG Art Collection. Some of his other achievements in fashion include designing for first lady Michelle Obama and the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, being listed as a finalist for the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Award (2012), receiving the CFDA Swarovski Award for Womenswear (2011), winning the Drawing Award from the Creativity Center (2015), and working with Lane Bryant (2017), Target (2013), and MAC Cosmetics (2014). Aside from his full-time career as a fashion designer, Gurung established the Shikshya Foundation in Nepal, a non-profit program to benefit underprivileged children in Nepal. This program was created in 2012, and since then has benefitted over sixty students. The Shikshya Foundation also funds workshops and orientations for teachers to provide students with a positive education in reading, writing, mathematics, and finance. To raise awareness for his project he worked with TOMS design company in 2016. In addition, Gurung has made strides in supporting Planned Parenthood, ACLU, voter registration, and created a relief fund for Nepal earthquake victims in 2015 which raised almost one million in funds. Gurung has joined many in a campaign called "Stop Asian Hate", which works to stop the rise in Asian hate-crimes and racism as exacerbated by
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
.


Awards and honors

In 2010 he was the recipient of the Ecco Domani Fashion Fund Award and received a nomination for the 2010 CFDA/
Swarovski Swarovski (, ) is an Austrian producer of glass based in Wattens, Austria, and has existed as a family-owned business since its founding in 1895 by Daniel Swarovski. The company is split into three major industry areas: the Swarovski Crystal ...
Womenswear Award. He was also chosen by prominent fashion editors, retailers, designers and business people for the CFDA Fashion Incubator for 2010–2012. In November 2010, Gurung was runner-up for the 2010 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund.


See also

* List of Nepali people *
List of LGBT people from New York City New York City is home to one of the largest LGBT populations in the world and the most prominent. Brian Silverman, the author of ''Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day,'' writes that the city has "one of the world's largest, loudest, and most ...


References


External links


Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gurung, Prabal Living people American fashion designers LGBT fashion designers 1974 births People from Singapore American Hindus LGBT Hindus Parsons School of Design alumni National Institute of Fashion Technology alumni Nepalese emigrants to the United States LGBT American people of Asian descent Nepalese fashion designers Gurung people