Joann Lopez
- Thread starter Sunday White
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Sunday White
Registered Guest
Looking for information on this dress designer Joann Lopez? I found a brief mention of her in a 2014 article about Los Angeles in the 1960’s by Mellisa Tottem? I would love to see other creation by her? Can’t seem to find anything?
This is gorgeous Sunday!
Hi,
So I joined this forum specifically to answer this question. JoAnn is my mom. She did many dresses in the 70's for a number of celebrities. I don't have a complete list, but among them included Elizabeth Taylor, Carol Burnette, Sharon Tate, Lilly Tomlin and others. I know a dress worn be Zsa Zsa was available online a short while ago.
JoAnn was featured in a show about the Ceeje Callary, there is a profile of her on her early painting work in this book https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/distributed/A/bo214796083.html
JoAnn is 87 years old at this point stopped doing design work some 30 years ago.
Regards,
Tracey
So I joined this forum specifically to answer this question. JoAnn is my mom. She did many dresses in the 70's for a number of celebrities. I don't have a complete list, but among them included Elizabeth Taylor, Carol Burnette, Sharon Tate, Lilly Tomlin and others. I know a dress worn be Zsa Zsa was available online a short while ago.
JoAnn was featured in a show about the Ceeje Callary, there is a profile of her on her early painting work in this book https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/distributed/A/bo214796083.html
JoAnn is 87 years old at this point stopped doing design work some 30 years ago.
Regards,
Tracey
That is so cool about your mom! Thank you for joining us.
Sunday, the OP is a good friend of mine. I will send her the link to the forum. I don't know if she still has the dress.
Sunday, the OP is a good friend of mine. I will send her the link to the forum. I don't know if she still has the dress.
amandainvermont
VFG Member
WOW! Wonderful Tracey that you joined to answer the question. It's a wonderful piece by your mother. I hope you have some of her work. Thank you for answering.
Shusteroo
VFG Secretary
Fabulous dress!
Shusteroo
VFG Secretary
Hi Tracey, thanks for joining us to share this information. I love your mum's dress, it's gorgeous!
Ranch Queen Vintage
Administrator
Susan, Since Sunday is your friend, would you please ask her for permission to add the label from this spectacular dress to the LR?
@tracey Thank you for supplying a bit of your mom's bio! If you'd care to share additional notes about her background, what influenced her to become a fashion designer, etc, please add to this thread or feel free to DM me!
Brief Bio
JoAnn was born in 1938. Her father was an art professor at a number of different universities, so JoAnn moved around a lot. The most important time for her creatively was the time she spent working on her Masters in Fine Arts at UCLA. She developed her sense of style at UCLA mostly in oil paintings and watercolors. Through different alum at UCLA she became friends with other LA artists, many of whom went on to become well known, people like Edmund Teske and Aron Goldberg.
It was through a chance encounter in 1964 with the owner of Chequer West, a well know shop on Hollywood BLVD that she started selling garments. Mostly she sold Kaftcan dresses. From Chequer West she developed private clients where she made many custom pieces. Often new clients came to her from people after seeing someone wearing one of her dresses in a photo from a magazine, or the like. She stopped making garments for people in the mid 90's. Although, she continued to make art pieces using textiles until around 2010.
All of JoAnn's pieces are handmade by her, she didn't farm any of the work out. As a consequence, there aren't very many of her dresses out there.
JoAnn was born in 1938. Her father was an art professor at a number of different universities, so JoAnn moved around a lot. The most important time for her creatively was the time she spent working on her Masters in Fine Arts at UCLA. She developed her sense of style at UCLA mostly in oil paintings and watercolors. Through different alum at UCLA she became friends with other LA artists, many of whom went on to become well known, people like Edmund Teske and Aron Goldberg.
It was through a chance encounter in 1964 with the owner of Chequer West, a well know shop on Hollywood BLVD that she started selling garments. Mostly she sold Kaftcan dresses. From Chequer West she developed private clients where she made many custom pieces. Often new clients came to her from people after seeing someone wearing one of her dresses in a photo from a magazine, or the like. She stopped making garments for people in the mid 90's. Although, she continued to make art pieces using textiles until around 2010.
All of JoAnn's pieces are handmade by her, she didn't farm any of the work out. As a consequence, there aren't very many of her dresses out there.
Ranch Queen Vintage
Administrator
Wow, this is just fantastic - thank you so much!
As soon as I receive permission to use the label photo above, I'll create an entry for our Label Resource and credit you as the writer. If you have any label photos, I'll add yours - if they're a variation on this one.
May I add in the passage about her celebrity clientele?
Thank you so much!
