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| Photo: visionaryproject.org/devoremitchellophelia |
Ophelia DeVore-Mitchell was born August 1922 in Edgefield,
South Caroline. Best known as a business pioneer in America, Ophelia made
history and challenged the status quo of beauty. It’s when Ophelia
moved to NYC with a close relative, she embarked on her own modeling career
becoming one of the first black models in the U.S.
In 1946 Ophelia enrolled in the Vogue School of Modeling,
within the same year she and four of her friends founded Grace Del Marco
Modeling Agency. This agency created opportunities for models of color. In 1948
she founded The Ophelia DeVore School of Self-Development and Modeling. This
very school groomed thousands of careers including: Cicely Tyson, Helen Williams,
Gil Noble and Diahann Carroll.
These are just a few major accomplishments of Ophelia DeVore-Mitchell.
She was quite an accomplished woman during a time of heavy oppression. She published newspapers, produced TV shows, launched
a beauty line and receive hundreds of awards and honors that acknowledge her contributions.
“I didn’t model a long time because that wasn’t my mission
to be a model. My mission was to have us
presented in a way that was not stereo typed.”-Ophelia DeVore-Mitchell
Being a business woman of color, Ophelia DeVore-Mitchell was
a true visionary for success and change.
Sources:
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