Cone 9
Clay Body:
White Stoneware
White Terra Sigillata
 
Pink Overglaze Enamel, 
 
Stoneware Pedestal
Black Chalk Paint
 
Ann Lowe (1898-1981) was the granddaughter of North Carolina seamstresses who learned her trade as a slave. Ann began creating her signature fabric flowers as a small child working beside her grandmother and mother. She took over their business as a teenager and eventually became the “best kept secret” among high society clients who underpaid her and did not credit her properly. She has been rediscovered by history after her death. Her most famous works are the Jacqueline Bouvier (aka Jackie Kennedy) wedding dress and the American Beauty dress (now displayed in the Smithsonian). That dress is the inspiration for this piece. For more information: https://nmaahc.si.edu/object/nmaahc_2007.3.19
 
The American Beauty Dress was created in the 1960’s at the height of Ann Lowe’s career. It has the empire silhouette popular at the time. My first attempts to throw the basic form before altering it resulted in a bell-shaped silhouette which was very prominent in Lowe’s work for other decades, especially the 1950’s.  The pedestal that I threw as one with the dress and dress form did not allow enough flexibility, so on the third attempt, I threw the dress without the pedestal.