{"meta":{"version":"2.1","_links":{"self":{"href":"https://api.vam.ac.uk/v2/object/O1797860"},"collection_page":{"href":"https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1797860/"}},"images":{"_primary_thumbnail":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2026PM9395/full/!100,100/0/default.jpg","_iiif_image":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2026PM9395/","_alt_iiif_image":[],"imageResolution":"low","_images_meta":[{"assetRef":"2026PM9395","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2026PM9396","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false}]},"see_also":null},"record":{"systemNumber":"O1797860","accessionNumber":"T.29-2026","objectType":"Dress","titles":[],"summaryDescription":"LOEWE is a Spanish luxury brand specialising in leather goods, founded by a group of leather craftsmen in Madrid in 1846. The brand was appointed Official Supplier to the Spanish Royal Crown in 1905, having earned a reputation for technical excellence and exquisite craftmanship. In 1965, LOEWE expanded into the ready-to-wear  clothing market, capitalising upon the success of their leather goods. Since that time, LOEWE’s artistic direction  has been overseen by several prominent names in fashion, including Giorgio Armani, Karl Lagerfeld, Narciso Rodriguez and Stuart Vevers. In 1996, LOEWE was acquired by the multi-national luxury conglomerate LVMH (LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE), which aimed to elevate the brand’s status within high fashion. LOEWE held its first catwalk presentation the following year, as part of Paris Fashion Week, where it continues to launch  its new collections.   \r\n\r\nIn 2013, LOEWE hired Northern Irish designer Jonathan Anderson (b.1984) as Creative Director, a role he fulfilled until 2025. Anderson’s appointment transformed LOEWE, boosting sales and brand positioning as well as bringing more recognition on the international stage. A graduate of London College of Fashion (University of the Arts London), Anderson founded his own fashion label JW Anderson in 2008, for which he continued to design  while working at LOEWE. In 2014 Anderson’s first collection for LOEWE was released to critical acclaim. Designing both menswear and womenswear, Anderson is known for innovative designs that incorporate  elements of craft, Surrealism and material experimentation, often reinventing familiar or traditional techniques. His  collections balance the unconventional with commercial appeal, juxtaposing eccentric, often sculptural garments and accessories with more understated wardrobe staples. In 2016, Anderson established the LOEWE Foundation Craft Prize, supporting independent artists across the globe with the aim of platforming and preserving craft skills.\n\nThis long black sleeveless dress with a sculptural brass breastplate was presented during LOEWE's Spring-Summer 2022 womenswear collection. Several dresses from this collection featured abstractly anatomical breastplates, which loosely followed the line of the body, sitting slightly off-centre. The breastplates were crafted using unique hand-hammering techniques.  Rigid, anatomically molded bodices formed a micro-trend in the early 2020s, with several designers sending versions down the catwalk.  Based on medieval armour, fashion’s recent renditions of the breastplate have typically taken a more sensual turn, replicating the naked torso to give the impression of nudity (for example T.6-2020). Anderson’s approach is characteristically offbeat, distorting the form and eroding anatomical features such that eroticism is suppressed. Rather than revealing the body underneath, Anderson wanted the breastplate to reveal something of the inner self: ‘Beaten metal becoming reflective, making an image of ourselves.’   Incorporated into the dress, rather than worn over it, the unyielding material of a garment typically associated with protection contrasts with the dress’s base material of stretchy ribbed jersey, a material typically worn for comfort and flexibility. ","physicalDescription":"Long, sleeveless black cotton jersey dress with crew neck and integrated brass breastplate. The breastplate is abstractly anatomical, loosely followed the line of the body, sitting slightly off-centre. ","artistMakerPerson":[{"name":{"text":"Jonathan Anderson","id":"AUTH344425"},"association":{"text":"designer","id":"x36960"},"note":""}],"artistMakerOrganisations":[{"name":{"text":"Loewe","id":"A4480"},"association":{"text":"fashion house","id":"x35890"},"note":""}],"artistMakerPeople":[],"materials":[{"text":"brass","id":"AAT10946"},{"text":"cotton","id":"AAT14067"}],"techniques":[],"materialsAndTechniques":"","categories":[{"text":"Fashion","id":"THES48957"},{"text":"Womenswear","id":"THES49044"}],"styles":[],"collectionCode":{"text":"T&F","id":"THES48601"},"images":["2026PM9395","2026PM9396"],"imageResolution":"low","galleryLocations":[{"current":{"text":"003","id":"THES404279"},"free":"","case":"","shelf":"","box":""}],"partTypes":[[{"text":"Ensemble","id":"AAT209844"}]],"contentWarnings":[{"apprise":"","note":""}],"placesOfOrigin":[{"place":{"text":"Italy","id":"x28927"},"association":{"text":"constructed","id":"AAT54608"},"note":""},{"place":{"text":"France","id":"x28849"},"association":{"text":"made","id":"x28654"},"note":"brass plate"}],"productionDates":[],"associatedObjects":[],"creditLine":"Given by LOEWE","dimensions":[{"dimension":"Width","value":"370","unit":"mm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"","note":"widest part across bodice"},{"dimension":"Length","value":"1370","unit":"mm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"shoulder to hem","note":""},{"dimension":"Width","value":"340","unit":"mm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"unstretched skirt width","note":""}],"dimensionsNote":"","marksAndInscriptions":[],"objectHistory":"","historicalContext":"","briefDescription":"Brass plate dress, cotton, brass, LOEWE by Jonathan Anderson, women's Spring-Summer 2022 collection, 2021.","bibliographicReferences":[],"production":"","productionType":{"text":"","id":""},"contentDescription":"","contentPlaces":[],"associatedPlaces":[],"contentPerson":[],"associatedPerson":[],"contentOrganisations":[],"associatedOrganisations":[],"contentPeople":[],"associatedPeople":[],"contentEvents":[],"associatedEvents":[],"contentOthers":[],"contentConcepts":[],"contentLiteraryRefs":[],"galleryLabels":[],"partNumbers":["T.29-2026"],"accessionNumberNum":"29","accessionNumberPrefix":"T","accessionYear":2026,"otherNumbers":[],"copyNumber":"","aspects":["WHOLE"],"assets":[],"recordModificationDate":"2026-04-24","recordCreationDate":"2025-02-24","availableToBook":false}}