Written by Louis James Powell

180 years. Let that sink in for a second. Loewe was founded in Madrid in 1846 before the telephone, before the lightbulb, before powered flight was even a dream. And yet here they are in 2026, somehow feeling more relevant than ever.

To mark the milestone, the Spanish luxury house has gone all in: a star-studded global campaign, a limited-edition capsule collection, an animated film narrated by Antonio Banderas, and a special publication called 180 Years of Craft. It's a full moment and it lands.

The Campaign

Photographed by Talia Chetrit, the anniversary campaign brings together brand ambassadors Julia Garner, Salma Abu Deif, Giselle, and Kara Wai, alongside actress Sissy Spacek and celebrated artist Kara Walker. The cast is as eclectic as it is intentional spanning generations, disciplines, and continents, with each face bringing something distinct to the table.

Rather than staging a grand retrospective or leaning heavily into nostalgia, the campaign focuses on portraits, personalities, and product. Chetrit's photography keeps things intimate without tipping into sentimentality, letting the bags and the people wearing them do the talking.

The Amazona 180

At the center of it all is the Amazona 180 a reimagining of the iconic boxy bag first introduced in 1975. The Amazona was reinterpreted by Loewe's new creative directors Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez for their debut Spring 2026 collection. It sits alongside the Flamenco Clutch and the Puzzle as the hero pieces of the campaign, each one a reminder of just how deep the Loewe archive runs.

A New Era, Same Craft

Under former creative director Jonathan Anderson, the house built a reputation for high-profile art world collaborations. Anderson left the brand last year to lead Christian Dior, but Loewe has continued to draw on art for both inspiration and history under McCollough and Hernandez. Kara Walker's presence in the campaign feels like a direct extension of that legacy.

As part of the anniversary, the house has produced a special publication titled 180 Years of Craft, distributed as a companion issue to Loewe Magazine Issue 11 and available free of charge from June 15 at Loewe boutiques and selected bookstores. It explores rare archive pieces and revisits the cultural context around the Amazona's original launch in 1970s Spain a time when the bag became a quiet symbol of women's independence.

Why It Matters for Us

Loewe has always sat at the intersection of fashion and art which is exactly the kind of space Gen Z actually cares about. This isn't a brand resting on its history. It's one that knows how to make 180 years feel completely of the moment.

The Loewe 180 capsule collection is available now in stores worldwide and at loewe.com. The 180 Years of Craft publication drops June 15.