Dress
Maker
Ann Lowe
Period1957
Place MadeNew York, New York, United States
MediumSatin, silk, velvet, buckram, grosgrain, steel boning, elastic, lace
SignedA woven label is sewn to the inside front waist tape and reads "Fashioned Exclusively at Ann Lowe's Gowns."
ClassificationsCostume, Women's
Credit LineGift of Mary Ann Ballantine, 2007
Object number2007.3
DescriptionA woman's strapless evening gown, low calf length, with a one-piece bodice and overskirt of heavy pale pink satin and a back zipper closure. A wide band of magenta velvet borders the top edge of the gown's bodice. The overskirt is elaborately draped and swagged, with magenta velvet bows at each swag gather. The attached underskirt of pale pink lace drapes over support crinoline skirts of fine netting and pink acetate. The bodice is entirely boned and supported, while the skirt is lined and stiffened with buckram. The gown retains a matching large rectangular magenta satin wrap.Curatorial RemarksThis dress was designed and made by Ann Lowe (1898 - 1981), an African American fashion designer who gained national attention when she designed and created Jacqueline Bouvier's wedding dress for her marriage to John F. Kennedy. Lowe was born in Clayton, Alabama, and was the great-granddaughter of an enslaved woman and a plantation owner. Both her mother, Janey Lowe, and grandmother Georgia Tompkins were highly talented seamstresses. Married in 1912 at the age of fourteen, Lowe attended a fashion school in New York City and opened a salon in Tampa, Florida, after graduating. In 1928 she returned to New York City where she worked on commission for well-known city dress shops. In 1946 Olivia de Haviland wore a dress designed by Lowe to receive the award for Best Actress at the Academy Awards for her performance in "To Each His Own." In 1953, Lowe designed and constructed Jackie Kennedy's wedding dress as well as the bridesmaids' dresses. Her gowns were exceptionally fabricated, with great attention to detail and finishing both inside and out. Low's career was not an easy one. In addition to facing prejudice as an African American couture dress designer (she was initially refused entry through the front door when she delivered Jackie Kennedy's wedding dress) she faced numerous economic troubles. Health issues plagued her as well. Her right eye was removed due to glaucoma and she later had to contend with cataracts. A 1964 Saturday Evening Post article called Lowe "Society's best kept secret." During an interview for Ebony magazine in 1966, Lowe said "All the pleasure I have had, I owe to my sewing." Lowe died at the age of 83 on February 25, 1981.NotesMary Ann Ballantine was a long-standing volunteer for the Historical Association, serving as a front desk guide for more than fifteen years. Mrs. Ballantine wore the gown to a party as a newly-married woman in the late 1950s.
Collections
