Paul Poiret: Fashion is a Feast at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, in Paris, France (Image credit: Christophe Dellière for the Musée des Arts décoratifs – www.madparis.fr)
As summer comes to a close, the seasons change, and so do global exhibitions. Museums around the world carry some of the most significant artifacts in textile history. Gallery exhibitions represent a moment in time, a reflection on the past that transports crowds into temporally defying spaces. Working to preserve pieces as time works against their construction, museums beautifully conserve garments as art pieces themselves, detailing the history of expression through their design and function. Here are some fashion exhibitions, current and upcoming, that are worth visiting this year, beginning with what’s on now:
Paul Poiret: Fashion is a Feast at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, in Paris, France – Until January 11, 2026
Home to one of the largest collections of Paul Poiret works, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris pays homage to the designer’s extensive history in the fashion world. Featuring a diverse range of his creations—clothing, accessories, and decorative art—the show showcases his boundless creativity, both in medium and form. Often regarded as a significant influence in popularizing the corset-less free silhouette, Poiret’s designs reflected the spirited, charismatic, and theatrical essence of the early twentieth century. With his disregard for constrictive clothing, the sumptuous drapery of his silky silhouettes remains resonant in today’s cultural sphere.
Superfine: Tailoring Black Style at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York City – Until October 26, 2025
Superfine: Tailoring Black Style at The Metropolitan Museum of Art (Image credit: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, metmuseum.org)
On the first Monday of May, celebrities walked the Metropolitan steps in sleek tailoring while attending the annual fundraiser for the Costume Institute. Beneath the spectacle of flashing cameras and timed poses, the Met Gala also marked the opening of the Institute’s new exhibition, Superfine: Tailoring Black Style. One of the most finely curated shows to date.
The powerful exhibition chronicles the evolving image of dandyism as a reclamation of power following the systemic oppression of American enslavement. With a collection ranging from zoot suits to velvet overcoats to modern casualwear, Superfine draws attention to the unrecognized historical importance of black garmenting. Its thoughtful arrangement of historical garments beside their contemporaries wonderfully displays the sharp grandeur and overwhelming influence of black dandyism.
Leigh Bowery! at Tate Modern, in London, UK – Until August 31, 2025
Leigh Bowery! at Tate Modern, London ((Image credit: Temilade Adelaja for the guardian.com)
Outlandish. Psychedelic. Kitsch. Artist and designer Leigh Bowery was boundary-breaking. The Tate Modern’s recent retrospective chronicles the many works of the late Bowery. In exploring the mediums of performance art, music, and fashion, his status as a remarkable artist and Queer icon came from his defiance of normalcy and exuberant vitality. The show pairs his clothing designs with their accompanying mediums, allowing his creations to thus become extensions of performance themselves. The bold to the point of tacky, exaggerated to the point of gross, Leigh Bowery!remarkably captures the essence of these pieces: that life is a stage for the many characters in which our body takes form.
Later this year
Virgil Abloh: The Codes at the Grand Palais, in Paris, France. September 30th – October 10, 2025
Virgil Abloh: The Codes at the Grand Palais, Paris (Image credit: virgilabloh.com)
September 30th marks two dates: the opening of the design retrospective Virgil Abloh: The Codes, and the day that would have been Abloh’s 45th birthday. Drawing from the 20,000-object collection, The Virgil Abloh Archive chronicles his accomplishments as a multidisciplinary artist, creative director, and cultural figure. Located in Paris, the city where he carried out much of his work, the approaching Grand Palais exhibition highlights his unending impact on the zeitgeist of modern menswear. With over 1,000 sketches and prototypes of his clothing and shoe designs to be shown to the public, The Codes will soon tell the story of Virgil Abloh’s creative process and his vast legacy in contemporary design.
Dirty Looks: Desire and Decay in Fashion at Barbican Art Gallery in London, UK. September 25, 2025 – January 25, 2026
Robert Wun, Yellow Rose, Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2024. (Image Credit: Ellen Sampson for Barbican.org.uk)
The average clothing consumer often thinks of dirt as an unwanted stain upon one’s purchases. But to some, it becomes the spirit of the garment. It certainly embodies the spirit of the Barbican Art Gallery’s upcoming show. Dirty Looks questions the perceived objectivity of “beauty” by platforming material decay and destruction. Featuring clothing from over sixty designers, the curators set out to explore the diverse interpretations of weathered objects. Some pieces incorporate raw materials as a return to the garments’ origin from Earth, while others explore the fallibility of meticulous construction through dishevelment. Dirty Looks navigates the relationship between body and Earth, grounding the viewer through textile deconstruction.
