John Galliano to the Burberry trench: these are the upcoming fashion exhibitions to add to your calendar

We are in the age of the fashion exhibition: recent years have seen a proliferation of the medium, with institutions across the world embracing the fashion industry’s pop cultural appeal to draw in visitors. There have been recent blockbuster shows on the relationship between art and fashion (‘Costume Art’ at the Met, New York), the couturier Elsa Schiaparelli (‘Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art’ at the V&A), and a side-by-side of the radical designers Vivienne Westwood and Rei Kawakubo (‘Westwood Kawakubo’ at the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne), as well as a slew of smaller displays in cities from Antwerp to Durham.

This golden age looks set to continue in late 2026 and into 2027: last week, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York announced the subject of its Spring 2027 Costume Institute exhibition, best known for its opening act, the Met Gala. In May 2027, it will host the first major retrospective of John Galliano, while other openings around the world will explore the work of Azzedine Alaïa and Vivienne Westwood. Elsewhere, there will be exhibitions on Burberry’s trench coat, the impact of the 1990s on fashion and art, curated by Edward Enninful, and a Bottega Veneta-sponsored exhibition on artistic patron Peggy Guggenheim.

Here, as selected by the Wallpaper* style editors, six standout fashion exhibitions to add to your calendar.

‘John Galliano: Horizons’ at the Met (May 9 2027–January 9, 2028)

Last week, New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art announced its Spring 2027 fashion exhibition, the opening of which is celebrated by the annual Met Gala on the first Monday of May. Titled ‘John Galliano: Horizons’, the Andrew Bolton-curated exhibition marks the first major retrospective of the British designer, who is known for his tenures at Givenchy, Maison Margiela, and, most memorably, Dior. Drawing on The Met Costume Institute’s already extensive collection of Galliano’s work (it is the largest in the world), it will begin with his Central Saint Martins graduate collection and traverse his over-four-decade-long career, celebrating his imaginative garments – which are often rooted in historical costume – and theatrical runway shows, though Bolton also says that the exhibition will not shy away from controversy (Galliano was fired from Dior after an anti-semitic outburst in 2011; later, after rehabilitation, he would return at creative director of Maison Margiela in 2014).

‘Every Galliano collection begins as a journey among things separated by time, place, or medium: portrait and posture, silhouette and story, memory and material,’ says Bolton. ‘“Horizons” approaches fashion as a form of cartography, mapping not territories but affinities, tensions, and transformations. It traces how images become ideas, ideas become material, and material becomes emotion. Yet a horizon reveals not only what lies before us, but also where we stand – the exhibition therefore considers both how Galliano has remapped the world through fashion and how his conduct, its consequences, and changing cultural values have reshaped our understanding of his work.’

‘The Burberry Trench: Crafting an Icon’ at the V&A (21 September 2026–3 January 2027)

London’s V&A Museum has long been known for its blockbuster fashion displays: in recent years, subjects have included the houses of Dior, Chanel and Schiaparelli (the latter, ‘Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art’, remains on display until November 8, 2026). This September, a new exhibition will look towards an altogether more British institution, Burberry, and its signature garment – the trench coat. Titled ‘The Burberry Trench: Crafting an Icon’ and taking place in the museum’s Prince Consort Gallery, it coincides with the brand’s 170th anniversary and will explore the garment, from its beginnings in the Boer War towards more recent iterations under creative directors including Christopher Bailey and Daniel Lee (we explored the garment’s history in our May 2026 design issue).

‘As we mark 170 years of the house, we are thrilled to partner with the V&A to celebrate the enduring legacy of the Burberry trench coat – a global design icon rooted in British craftsmanship and a symbol of innovation, creativity and timeless style,’ says Carly Eck, brand curator, Burberry. ‘A myriad of objects from the brand’s archive will be publicly exhibited for the first time – from early 20th-century catalogues to a Burberry trench coat worn by fashion designer Hardy Amies.’

‘Azzedine Alaïa: Sculpting Fashion’ at Legion of Honor Museum, San Francisco (November 21, 2026–April 11, 2027)

American Azzedine Alaïa fans, rejoice – a retrospective of the French-Tunisian couturier’s work is heading stateside this November. Taking place at San Francisco’s Legion of Honor Museum, it will mark the first US retrospective of the designer’s work and will explore his highly influential collections, which were defined by sculptural construction, body-contouring silhouettes, and an innate sensuality. ‘What really struck me was that we shared a preoccupation with material – an intrinsic, fundamental understanding that you cannot disconnect a material from form,’ Jony Ive told Wallpaper* after Azzedine Alaïa died in 2017. ‘I found his tenacity and refusal to accept the limits of a material enormously inspiring. If something wasn’t working in the way he believed it should, he would go and create a new material.’

Featuring 80 garments – including those worn by Tina Turner, Grace Jones, and Rihanna – as well as garments from the couturiers who inspired him, the display will take over the lower-level and first-floor galleries, and is presented in collaboration with the Azzedine Alaïa Foundation. ‘Azzedine Alaïa profoundly transformed fashion by introducing body-conscious, sculptural designs that empowered women to reclaim their bodily autonomy and reframe sexiness as strength,’ says Laura L. Camerlengo, the exhibition’s co-curator. ‘This exhibition highlights his enduring legacy as a catalyst for feminist self-fashioning, and celebrates the profound cultural impact that his creations had on contemporary women, including iconic American cultural figures such as entertainer Tina Turner and First Lady Michelle Obama.’

‘Peggy Guggenheim in London: The Making of a Collector’ at the Royal Academy of Arts (21 November 2026–14 March 2027)

‘Peggy Guggenheim in London: The Making of a Collector’ is a new exhibition at London’s Royal Academy of Arts that explores the legacy of Peggy Guggenheim, one of the 20th century’s most well-known artistic patrons. Not a fashion exhibition per se – though Guggenheim did have plenty of personal style – ‘Peggy Guggenheim in London’ will be sponsored by the Italian fashion house Bottega Veneta, which was founded close to Venice, the city where Guggenheim lived for much of her life.

‘Peggy Guggenheim’s story is deeply woven into the cultural landscape of Venice, where she established her home and created a lasting legacy through her pioneering approach to collecting and her unwavering support of artists,’ says Bottega Veneta. ‘Through an instinctive and deeply personal approach to fostering art, she created a space where artists, ideas, and cultures continue to come together in dialogue. Guided by this unique worldview, her belief in creativity as a force for transformation continues to define the city’s artistic identity.’

‘The 90s: Art and Fashion’ at Tate Britain (8 October 2026–14 February 2027)

Former British Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful turns curator for an upcoming exhibition at London’s Tate Britain, which looks towards the 1990s – a time of ‘bold creativity and rebellious spirit,’ according to the institution. Spanning both art and fashion, ‘The 90s: Art and Fashion’ looks to deep-dive into the seminal era, comprising both the era’s blockbuster names – Tracey Emin, Damien Hirst, Alexander McQueen, Juergen Teller, Corinne Day and the like – as well as lesser-known figures, particularly those who worked outside of cultural norms (issues of race, class, identity and the Aids crisis will also be foregrounded). ‘The 1990s established conditions that are still with us,’ says Enninful. ‘The merging of high and low culture, the politicisation of fashion and image and the emergence of diversity as a creative force. What defined that period for me was not a single movement, but an energy – a refusal of hierarchy and a belief that new voices could and should be heard across art, fashion, music and image-making.’

‘Vivienne Westwood & Jewellery’ at V&A Dundee (opening 26 March 2027)

The V&A’s Dundee outpost, designed by Kengo Kuma, is quietly making a name for itself with a series of intriguing fashion exhibitions, from ‘The Fashion Show: Everything but the Clothes', which explored the ephemera around a runway show, to a moving display on Palestinian embroidery in 2025. Next up? An exhibition on Vivienne Westwood and her relationship with jewellery, curated by the British fashion house, spanning both Westwood’s own designs and the historical moments which inspired them.

‘Scotland has always been in mine and Vivienne’s hearts, and I really got to know it through Vivienne,’ says Andreas Kronthaler, creative director, Vivienne Westwood. ‘I always go back to its traditions – I even have my own tartan the MacAndreas which is one of the first things I made when I came to London. So I am really happy to show the exhibition in Dundee - it’s a brilliant opportunity.’