Marquis Engle

Marquis Engle is a dynamic Artist who uses a plethora of mediums to tell stories of strength and courage in a creative way. He graduated from the Cleveland School of the Arts in 2009 with six consecutive years of expertise in Visual Arts--including but not limited to Wet and Digital Photography, Digital Design, Ceramics, Figure Drawing and Oil painting. Marquis furthered his education at Columbus College of Art and Design (CCAD), a Private Arts College in Columbus, Ohio. It was there that Engle lasered his focus to Fashion Design and Social Activism to advocate for those like himself who live with HIV.

During his time at CCAD, Engle mastered his ability to demonstrate social activism through his craft and In 2012 Engle did just that during the annual Planned Parenthood Condom Couture Fashion Show. The Purpose was to raise money and awareness of the continued epidemic of HIV and Aids by designing and displaying garments which were created completely from latex condoms. Engle earned third place and leveraged the platform to reveal his HIV positive status. His intent and impact were so successful in reminding the audience why they were there that Engle and Planned Parenthood later partnered to create a PSA and also authored a column for the Call and Post raising for World Aids Day, which is celebrated annually on December 1st.

Engle further solidified his impact in 2013 when he was invited to participate in CMH Fashion Week which is now known as Fashion Week Columbus-- and at the time was the third City in America for Fashion according to Columbus Monthly. Engle again merged his activism with his innovative design concepts that would change Columbus’ Fashion industry and raise the bar of expectation. Engle received rave reviews in the days following and garnered more press than the headlining designer. This created yet another opportunity that lead to Engle’s invitation to Headline the next year. With such momentum behind him, Engle auditioned for and made 15th place two years in a row, 2014 and 2015, for the hit show “Project Runway.” Engle has since taken a hiatus from fashion to concentrate on his Social Justice efforts and Direct Action.

Having served as Program Director of a Non-Profit in San Francisco the past four years Engles’ focus is now on enriching the lives of youth, young adults and the Leaders that work with them. Engles’ influence reaches across America from Ohio, throughout the Midwest, New York, and the Bay area, where he currently resides. Although on a break, Engle continues to create with his activism and has been featured in a six-page centerfold spread for “The Columbus Book Project” which highlights the best of Columbus Ohio. Engle was invited to give the keynote at TEDx Moreau Catholic High in Hayward California and shortly after receiving the coveted opportunity to share his story with Toastmasters Tv. His work has been acknowledged by The Golden Gate Parks Conservancy in addition to being honored in their "Annual Repor