Olivia de Havilland's Oscar Dress
Jacqueline Kennedy's wedding dress, Olivia de Havilland's Oscar gown, Ann Lowe might have been one of the most impactful fashion designers and you probably don't even know her name.
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Ann Lowe was born into a family of dressmakers and learned how
to sew from her mother and grandmother. By five, she was sewing; by six she was
using the fabric scraps to make whimsical ideas happen; by ten she was designing
dresses.
Ann became enamoured with flowers and floral elements and worked them into her designs. Her work gained her notices with the upper-class crowds, and she was commissioned to make wedding gowns and other dresses for the Social Register. All this led her to New York City to study at the S. T. Taylor Design School. She was the only Black student in the class, working separately from her white classmates, and was often shouted out as the one to watch and the one to learn from despite not being allowed in the same physical room as them. There’s an excellent article on Ann Lowe’s rise, I’m going to link it here because it’s definitely worth the read. Suffice it to say that Ann’s talent was noticeable immediately. After schooling she continued working for the Social Register set, and is quoted as saying that “I love my clothes and I’m particular about who wears them. I am not interested in sewing for social climbers. I do not cater to Mary and Sue. I sew for families of the Social Register.”
When Olivia de Havilland won the Best Actress Oscar in 1946 for To Each His Own, the press reported on her blue floral strapless dress and Sonia Gowns received the credit, as that’s who Ann was designing for at the time.
The blue dress featured a cinched, belted waist with a billowing skirt and a trail of floral embellishments dripping down from the bodice to the bottom of the skirt. It’s asbolutely beautiful in photographs.
In the decades since, Ann has finally gotten her due and people now know to associate her with Olivia de Havilland's dress. She's been at the centre of fashion retrospectives and many examinations of her life and career that frame her as the master she was.
Now back to Liv for a brief minute, before we end this: you might also recognize this Oscar evening for being a central part of the Olivia vs Joan feud. Waiting backstage, Joan was eager to congratulate her older sister on her win. Olivia totally snubbed her (or didn't see her, which ;) ) and the moment was caught on camera.
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