Unmissable fashion exhibitions to add to your calendar in 2026

2025 has been quite the year in fashion, with more creative director shifts and designer debuts than ever before. For S/S 2026, the most recent season of shows back in September, the world watched as 15 new visions were unveiled at major brands like Chanel, Loewe and Dior. Alongside the myriad new chapters beginning, a wave of extraordinary fashion exhibitions opened this year – marking what felt like a renaissance of the form, and spoiling fashion enthusiasts for choice. Just this summer, usually a quiet time of holidays and switching off, we noted 11 to choose from.

The exhibitions we saw in 2025 were tonics to what has at times felt like a turbulent year. The change seen across the fashion industry has indeed been exciting to witness, but brings with it a sneaking sense of uncertainty – like things could shift at a moment’s notice. To visit an exhibition, then, can be a welcome moment of pause – to take stock of the state of contemporary fashion, reflect on the work of those no longer with us, or simply get lost in history.

As we look to 2026, there is much of the same to look forward to. From celebrations of both historic couturiers and young image-makers, iconic decades and important anniversaries, there are a wealth of fashion exhibitions opening next year. Many examine the intersection between fashion and art, showcasing how the two inform and enrich each other. All of them are unmissable – below are ten of the best shows gracing various cities around the world in 2026.

Unmissable fashion exhibitions in 2026

‘The 90s’ at Tate Britain (pictured above)

Curated by former British Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful, this Tate Britain exhibition will explore the 1990s as ‘a new dawn of optimism, freedom and rebellion’ and the abundance of creative talent that emerged during the decade. Via the fashion of designers including Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen and Hussein Chalayan and photography by the likes of Corinne Day and David Sims, the show will look at the forces that defined the time and shaped the culture.

1 October 2026 – 14 February 2027. tate.org.uk

‘The Antwerp Six’ at MoMu – Fashion Museum Antwerp

This exhibition made news when it was announced earlier this year, such is the anticipation for the first show dedicated to the group of iconoclastic Belgian designers known as ‘The Antwerp Six’: Dirk Bikkembergs, Ann Demeulemeester, Walter Van Beirendonck, Dries Van Noten, Dirk Van Saene and the late Marina Yee. 2026 marks 40 years since the six designers, all graduates of Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts, rented a van and took their collections to London’s British Designer Show. The trip was a bold and brilliant success, impressing buyers and critics and turning the industry’s attention towards a city not previously renowned for its fashion output.

28 March 2026 – 17 January 2027. momu.be

‘Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art’ at the V&A South Kensington

‘In difficult times fashion is always outrageous’ reads a quote from Elsa Schiaparelli accompanying the V&A’s forthcoming exhibition charting the history and present-day of her eponymous fashion house. From Schiaparelli’s beginnings as a surrealist and boundary-breaking couturier in the 1920s – including pieces from her collaborations with Salvador Dalí – to the present-day revival of the brand under the stewardship of Daniel Roseberry, the show will chart the house’s extraordinary history for the first time in the UK.

From 28 March 2026. vam.ac.uk

‘Nigo: From Japan with Love’ at the Design Museum, London

London’s Design Museum will host the first retrospective outside of Japan dedicated to the work of multi-hyphenate creative director Nigo. Founder of A Bathing Ape and current artistic director of Kenzo, Nigo’s influence on contemporary fashion and streetwear is vast – demonstrated by the breadth of this exhibition, which will also feature items from Nigo’s personal collection of ephemera and inspirations.

1 May – 4 October 2026. designmuseum.org

‘Tim Walker’s Fairyland: Love and Legends’ at the National Portrait Gallery, London

A rare opportunity to step inside the idiosyncratic world of Tim Walker arrives thanks to this autumn exhibition at London’s National Portrait Gallery. Known for his playful portraiture and whimsical fashion photography, Walker’s focus for this show is on trailblazers from the queer community in Britain, dozens of whom he has captured over the last five years in preparation.

8 October 2026 – 31 January 2027. npg.org.uk

‘Color Power. Rafael Pavarotti’ at Musée des Arts Décoratifs Paris

It’s easy to forget that Rafael Pavarotti has been working for a relatively short time, such is the strength of his aesthetic. The Brazilian photographer – born in 1993 – draws in part on his upbringing in the Amazon rainforest to create his striking images, usually with recognisably rich hues. Pavarotti’s photography has graced the pages of fashion’s biggest magazines and formed campaigns for major houses, and this show brings together over 200 of his captivating prints.

23 September 2026 – 7 February 2027. madparis.fr

‘Costume Art’ at the Met Costume Institute, New York

The Costume Institute’s annual spring exhibition will be held for the first time in the Met’s vast new Galleries, a space of nearly 12,000 sq ft. 2026’s exhibition is titled ‘Costume Art’ and will explore the varied, intimate ways in which clothing affects the body and vice versa. By pairing objects and artworks from the Met’s wider collections with garments from the Costume Institute, the show will hone in on this intuitive symbiosis, organised into a series of ‘thematic body types’.

10 May 2026 – 10 January 2027. metmuseum.org

‘Vivienne Westwood: Rebel – Storyteller – Visionary’ at the Bowes Museum

Durham’s Bowes Museum has an impressive history of exhibitions dedicated to Vivienne Westwood, and in 2026 ‘Rebel – Storyteller – Visionary’ is set to be their most extensive. Featuring pieces from rarely exhibited private collections, alongside objects from the museum’s own archives, the show will hone in on a 20-year period from the 1980s to the 2000s, showcasing how the late designer established herself as one of Britain’s greatest creative forces.

28 March – 6 September 2026. thebowesmuseum.org.uk

‘Many Shades of Grès’ at the Museum of Decorative Arts Berlin

Storied couturier and costume designer Madame Grès will be the subject of a Berlin show, bringing her work to a German audience for the first time. With a particular focus on garments from the 1960s to the 1980s, the show is an opportunity to dive into a rarefied world, and see in person the expert draping, pleating and construction that made Madame Grès one of France’s most successful and influential designers.

5 May – 22 November 2026. smb.museum

‘Art X Fashion’ at the FIT Museum New York

This New York exhibition at the Fashion Institute of Technology Museum will address a deceptively simple question: ‘Is fashion art?’ Via a wealth of both historical and contemporary designs, the show will hone in on the ways fashion has influenced art and vice versa, how both disciplines have the ability to both reflect and shape wider culture. With designs by the likes of Elsa Schiaparelli, Rei Kawakubo and Iris Van Herpen on display, the intricacy and craftsmanship on show is not to be missed.

18 February – 19 April 2026. fitnyc.edu