As New York Fashion Week commences during Black History Month, we’re commemorating the great African American fashion designer Ann Lowe. From the 1920s through the 1960s, her designs were popular among upper class clients and she is best known for having created the silk taffeta gown Jacqueline Bouvier wore for her marriage to John F. Kennedy.
Descended from slaves, Lowe grew up in rural Alabama and learned sewing from her seamstresses mother and grandmother. After moving to New York City, she studied at the S.T. Taylor Design School, then moved to Tampa, Florida, where she was patronized by high society patrons. After returning to New York she worked on commission for stores such as Henri Bendel, I. Magnin, Neiman Marcus, and Saks Fifth Avenue, then opened salons of her own where her one-of-a-kind styles attracted wealthy clients.
Embellishing the garments with hand worked three-dimensional quilting and flowers, she provided finery for members of the Whitney, Rockefeller, DuPont, and other distinguished families as well as for notable black clients. Olivia de Havilland accepted her Academy Award in a dress created by Ann Lowe. The photos below were snapped at an exhibit of her work held in past months at the Winterthur Museum in Delaware, an overdue retrospective of work which is gaining growing respect for an early master of American fashion design.
