Culture of the Dominican Republic the Dominican Republic's fashion week has become the most important event of its kind in all of the Caribbean and one of the fastest growing fashion events in the entire Latin American fashion world. The country boasts one of the ten most important design schools in the region, La Escuela de Diseño de Altos de Chavón, which is making the country a key player in the world of fashion and design. World famous fashion designer Oscar de la Renta was born in the Dominican Republic in 1932 and became a US citizen in 1971. He studied under the leading Spaniard
Carolyne Roehm before becoming an assistant designer. De la Renta became a mentor and father figure to her, even threatening her then-significant other, Henry Kravis, when he did not immediately propose to Roehm upon his divorce to his first wife. In 1985, after ten years working for Oscar de la Renta, Roehm became a fashion designer at the age of 34 when she launched her own fashion house. Roehm’s high-end clothing was designed for women with money, active lifestyles and calendars filled with social engagements and work outside the house. Although it received accolades, she shut down the line in 1991. While