Ann Lowe

Ann Cole Lowe
Born	1898-12-14 Clayton, Alabama, U.S.
Died	1981-02-25
Occupation	Fashion designer
Years active	1919–1972
Known for	Designing Jacqueline Bouvier's wedding gown for her marriage to John F. Kennedy; first African American widely recognized in the fashion industry

Ann Cole Lowe (December 14, 1898 – February 25, 1981) was a distinguished American fashion designer, best known for crafting the ivory silk taffeta bridal gown worn by Jacqueline Bouvier at her 1953 wedding to John F. Kennedy. She holds the distinction of being the first African American to achieve widespread recognition in the fashion industry. From the 1920s through the 1960s, Lowe’s couture creations were highly sought after by affluent women.

Early life

Born in Clayton, Alabama, in 1898 to Jane and Jack Lowe, Ann Cole Lowe descended from both an enslaved woman and a plantation owner. Growing up with her older sister Sallie, she attended school until she was fourteen years old. Her enthusiasm for fashion was inspired by her mother Janey and grandmother Georgia, both skilled seamstresses who ran a dressmaking enterprise catering to Montgomery’s elite clientele. Following her mother’s passing when Lowe was sixteen, she took over the family dressmaking business.

Personal life

Lowe experienced two marriages and was mother to two children. Her first marriage was to Lee Cohen in 1912; they had a son named Arthur Lee, who later partnered with her in business until his death in a car accident in 1958. Due to Cohen’s disapproval of her professional ambitions, Lowe separated from him. She subsequently married Caleb West, but that union also ended in divorce. Later, Lowe adopted a daughter named Ruth Alexander. During the 1930s, she resided in Harlem with her sister Sallie; both were active members of St. Mark's United Methodist Church.

Career

In 1917, Lowe relocated with her son to New York City and enrolled at the S. T. Taylor Design School. Despite racial segregation that required her to attend classes separately from others, she excelled academically and completed the program in just six months. After graduating in 1919, she moved with Arthur Lee to Tampa, Florida, where she launched her inaugural dress salon targeting high society clients and quickly gained recognition. After accumulating savings of $20,000, she returned to New York City in 1928.

Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Lowe accepted commissions from prominent retailers such as Henri Bendel, Montaldo's, I. Magnin, Chez Sonia, Neiman Marcus, and Saks Fifth Avenue. In 1946, she designed the gown worn by Olivia de Havilland when accepting the Academy Award for Best Actress for To Each His Own, although credit was given to Sonia Rosenberg.

In 1950, Lowe and her son opened a second establishment named Ann Lowe's Gowns on Lexington Avenue in New York City. Her unique designs crafted from luxurious fabrics attracted an elite clientele. Renowned for meticulous handcrafting, signature floral embellishments, and trapunto quilting methods, Lowe’s work gradually received acclaim; the Saturday Evening Post described her as "society's best kept secret" in 1964 while Ebony magazine honored her as "The Dean of American Designers" in 1966. She maintained a discerning approach toward clients, focusing on families listed in the Social Register rather than newcomers seeking status.

Lowe created dresses for multiple generations of distinguished families including the Auchinclosses, Rockefellers, Roosevelts, Lodges, Du Ponts, Posts, Bouviers, Whitneys, and Biddles. Additionally, she designed gowns for notable African American clients such as pianist Elizabeth Mance and Idella Kohke of the Negro Actors Guild.

In 1947, Janet Lee Auchincloss commissioned debutante gowns for her daughters Jacqueline and Caroline Lee Bouvier. Later in 1953, she engaged Lowe to design Jacqueline Bouvier’s wedding gown along with dresses for the bridal party for her marriage to Senator John F. Kennedy. Auchincloss had previously selected Lowe to create her own wedding dress in 1942. The iconic bridal gown incorporated fifty yards of ivory silk taffeta featuring intricate tucking on both bodice and skirt. Despite a devastating studio flood just ten days before the wedding that ruined much of the work—imposing unreimbursed costs on Lowe—she completed the dress on schedule. Valued at $500 (equivalent to approximately $today), the gown was extensively detailed by The New York Times, though Lowe did not receive public acknowledgment until after President Kennedy’s assassination.

Throughout her professional life, Lowe frequently encountered financial difficulties as clients often negotiated lower fees; after covering staff salaries she commonly earned little or no profit and admitted being nearly broke even at her career peak. She was awarded Couturier of the Year in 1961 but lost her New York salon in 1962 due to unpaid taxes. That same year she underwent surgery resulting in removal of her right eye because of glaucoma; an anonymous donor settled her debts enabling continued work. She declared bankruptcy in 1963 and later had cataract surgery on her left eye. In 1968 she founded Ann Lowe Originals on Madison Avenue before retiring in 1972.

Death

In her later years, Lowe resided with her daughter Ruth in Queens. She passed away on February 25, 1981, at the age of 82 following a prolonged illness. Her funeral service took place at St. Mark's United Methodist Church.

Legacy

The Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art preserves five of Ann Lowe's creations, while the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture exhibits three of her pieces. In 2016, several of her designs were showcased in a Black fashion exhibition at the Fashion Institute of Technology. A children's biography titled Fancy Party Gowns: The Story of Ann Cole Lowe was released in 2017, and author Piper Huguley penned a historical fiction novel inspired by Lowe’s life called By Her Own Design. Her craftsmanship received praise from renowned designers Christian Dior and Edith Head. From September 2023 through January 2024, the Winterthur Museum presented an exhibition featuring Lowe's works from the 1920s to the 1960s.

External links

• Collection of Ann Lowe's designs at metmuseum.org