Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art is to run from March 21 to November 1, 2026
Next March, London’s Victoria and Albert Museum will stage the first ever exhibition in the UK devoted to Schiaparelli.
The collection will honor the impact and creativity of one of the 20th century’s most innovative and influential designers, Elsa Schiaparelli, and will chronicle her eponymous house—tracing from its origins and first paradigm-shifting pieces to its present day incarnation under creative director Daniel Roseberry, whose work continues to shape and inspire global culture today. Featuring a carefully curated garments, accessories, jewellery, paintings, photographs, sculpture, furniture, perfumes and archive material, including the iconic ‘Skeleton’ dress, the museum’s art and fashion curators highlight the history of a female entrepreneur and showcase her celebrated, yet little-seen garments, placing her at the nexus of innovation, a key figure within a stellar sphere of fashion, art and performance which spanned the cities of Paris, London, and New York from the interwar period up to her retirement in 1954. Lending local flair, the exhibition will be the first of its kind to spotlight Schiaparelli’s London branch, its dynamic and independent clients and the founder’s own involvement in the satellite location.
Beyond the objects themselves, the exhibition will feature works from Maison muses and collaborators Pablo Picasso, Jean Cocteau and Man Ray, and will reference the popularity of Schiaparelli’s designs for film and theatre productions..
Elsa Schiaparelli was renowned for effortlessly transcending the boundaries between fashion and art, turning ordinary items and ideas into innovative clothing, accessories and jewellery, and redefining standards of style and beauty. A true artist herself, Schiaparelli is the creative force behind some of fashion’s most revolutionary shapes, techniques and colors. “This exhibition celebrates her enduring influence through iconic collaborations with 20th-century masters and a pioneering fusion of creativity and commerce. With its unparalleled collections, expertise in fashion and design, cultural reach, and ability to bridge tradition and innovation, the Victoria and Albert Museum offers the perfect setting to showcase her legacy alongside Daniel Roseberry’s creations, which carry her surrealist spirit forward blurring lines with bold, sculptural designs that both honour and reinvent her vision for a new century,” said Schiaparelli CEO Delphine Bellini.
