Marian Kwei; A Fashion Icon
Marian Kwei (formerly Kihogo) is a style icon who has been deemed an influence on fashion by Italian journalistic agency, Consul Press (2014). Hailed ‘best dressed’ by The Guardian and The New York Post, she was called ‘resplendent’ by The Evening Standard, ‘bold and dazzling’ by Demand Africa and ‘fearless’ in style by leading fashion platform Refinery29 UK. Her media appearances has included E! News, BBC Radio and Swedish TV.
Consul Press has looked at how Kwei’s style (which is bold and fearless) has inspired fashion. It compared her influence on fashion to the influence Africa had on the work of great artists Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse.
The icon of African heritage (born in The Gambia to Ghanaian parents) has garnered incredible press. With features from over 60 international titles such as Vogue, The New York Times, Forbes, Black Enterprise, NY Daily News Kwei is noted as a pioneer of social media, she was a part of the early wave of bloggers with her eponymous then platform Mariankihogo.com. This led to her being choosen as part of a group of profiles to grace the first mainstream magazine to feature social media icons on its cover. This was the Company Magazine January 2013 issue.
Kwei is also a pioneer for inclusion with her being invited into spaces with guestlists that broke the glass ceiling that many people of colour where not being allowed into.
She seeks to change this, wanting her access to usher a high fashion and entertainment industry that is truly representative of society. She has discussed this on BBC Radio.
She has worked on collaborations with Dolce & Gabbana, Marc Cain and even hosted Westfield’s Car-Boot sale. These are a few of her collaborations to date.
2023 saw her launch her #MARIANSTYLES initiative which sees her offer her styling services on a complimentary basis to those affected by cancer, mental health and bullying. She is working on further intiatives at time of publication.
The fashion icon also styles for the red carpet and has styled the likes of Hollywood based British Nigerian Jimmy Akingbola of ‘Bel-Air’ the Will Smith backed reimaging of the hit TV show ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ for the BAFTA awards. In addition she contributes expert fashion commentary to fashion and style articles.
On a social front she has launched a new fashion inluence format using mini high fashion videos starring herself as styled by herself shot and edited by Keryn Mae Benjamin to inspire personal style. Benjamin’s cv includes Swizz Beatz, Zayn Malik, Bree Runway, Apple Music, Netflix etc.
The creative videos in question sees Marian model high fashion looks as styled by herself set against visually interesting locations. The wardrobe, settings and edits by Benjamin make for stunning visuals worth watching. These videos are a breath of fresh air, giving style influence but in a new way. It is proof that Kwei continues to truly inspire.
Her style, fearlessness, point of view, handle on high fashion and her creative ways of expressing it makes her a fashion icon.
She is truly one of a kind and Africa is proud of her.
Styled by – Marian Kwei – @marian_kwei
Photography: Macky Sirichai –
@macky.mann
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