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Donna Karan

Donna Karan (/ˈkærən/ KARR-ən; 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.

Donna Karan

Donna Ivy Faske

October 2, 1948 (1948-10-02) (age 75)
New York City, U.S.

Donna Karan

  • Mark Karan
    (m. 1976; div. 1978)
  • Stephan Weiss
    (m. 1983; died 2001)

2

Early life[edit]

Donna Ivy Faske was born to mother Helen "Queenie" Faske (née Rabinowitz) and father Gabriel "Gabby" Faske (born Faskowitz[1]) in the Forest Hills neighborhood of the Borough of Queens, New York City. Her family is Jewish.[2][3] Karan's mother had been a model and had also worked in designer Chester Weinberg's showroom. Her father was a tailor and haberdasher who died when Donna was three years old.[1]


Karan and her older sister Gail were raised by their mother in Woodmere, in the Five Towns region of Nassau County, New York.[4][5][6] Donna took pleasure in softball, volleyball, and basketball, cut classes in high school, and passed much of her time in the art department.[7] She graduated from Hewlett High School in 1966,[8] and then went to the Parsons School of Design.[9]

1977:

Coty American Fashion Critics’ Award

1982: Coty American Fashion Critics’ Award (together with Louis Dell’Ollio for )

Anne Klein

1984: Inducted into the Coty Hall Of Fame.

[18]

1986: Special award - Influence in Head-to-Toe Dressing[19]

CFDA

1992: CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year

[20]

1994: Golden Plate Award of the [21]

American Academy of Achievement

1985, 1990, 1996: CFDA Womenswear Designer of the Year

[19]

2004: CFDA Lifetime Achievement Award

[22]

2016: CFDA Founders Award

[23]

Personal life[edit]

In 1976, Donna Faske married Mark Karan, with whom she had a daughter. They divorced in 1978. In 1983, she married artist Stephan Weiss, who would later become co-CEO of the Donna Karan company. They had one son. Stephan Weiss died of lung cancer in 2001.[24]

Official website

Archived November 13, 2013, at the Wayback Machine

Designer Donna Karan promotes craftwork of Haiti