Jin Te Ok

Place: Wonsan

Born: 1934

Biography:

Jin Taeok, also known as Jin Te Ok, is a South Korean fashion designer born in Wonsan in 1934. She is considered a pioneer of Korean fashion and is passionate about reinterpreting traditional Korean art and fashion. She opened the first ready-to-wear brand in Korea, Francoise, in 1965. She has designed the uniforms for the 1988 Seoul Olympics and Asiana Airlines, and has participated in every Seoul Fashion Artists Association (SFAA) collection since 1989. She was the first Korean to participate in the pret-a-porter collection in Paris in 1993 and opened a boutique in Paris the following year. In 1999, she was selected as one of the '500 Fashionistas of the 20th Century' by Phaidon, a British art publisher. She remains active in the fashion industry.