American designers have always pushed the boundaries of fashion, especially during the 1960s to the 1990s. From the epic Battle of Versailles to glamorous grunge to C-suite chic, there are endless examples of how designers have helped reshape the conversation around American fashion, not just stateside but globally.
However, a select few have continuously proven that their work doesn’t just have the power to change how we dress, but also how we present ourselves to the world. From the 1960s to the 1990s, no one reigned over the American fashion industry quite like these icons.
Ann Lowe’s name might not immediately ring a bell for many, but this designer’s storied career is one for the history books. She is the first African American to become a famed and celebrated designer.
Highlights of Lowe’s career include opening several successful dress salons, where she designed ravishing looks for debutante balls and the women of high society, as well as creating Jackie Kennedy’s silk taffeta wedding dress.
Her work earned the designer the Couturier of the Year award in 1961, and recently, decades after her death, Lowe’s impact on fashion was honored once again with several of her works being featured in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s In America: An Anthology of Fashion costume exhibit in 2022.
From crafting clothes for her Barbies at the age of four and moving to the Big Apple to chase her dreams to befriending Steven Meisel at Parsons School of Design and having Madonna as her first celebrity fan, Sui’s iconic career is something out of a fashion fairytale.
