Anyone who would like to fill their 2025 calendar with cultural excursions can look forward to many highlights. A number of interesting (fashion) exhibitions at home and abroad have already been announced, but there are also some exhibitions already underway that you shouldn’t miss. Here are FashionUnited’s picks for the rest of 2024 and the year ahead.
First of all, the exhibitions that you can already admire. So that you don’t miss them, we have listed them in the order in which the exhibition closes.
Opened 2025:
Splash! A Century of Swimming and Style – London Design Museum, UK, – March 28, 2025 to August 17, 2025
What role has design played in people’s relationship with swimming? The London Design Museum gets to the bottom of this topic in this exhibition. Visitors can expect different types of swimwear (from around 1920 to today) as well as in-depth topics such as environmental issues and body image.
Superfine: Tailoring Black Style – Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, USA, – From May 10, 2025 to October 26, 2025
This spring, the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is dedicating itself to the “black dandy.” According to the museum’s website, the exhibition specifically examines the importance of clothing style in the formation of black identities in the Atlantic diaspora. The term dandy is often used to describe a man who places great value on style and maintains a disciplined approach to it.
“Dandyism was originally forced upon black men in 18th-century Europe, when the Atlantic slave trade and an emerging consumer culture created a trend for fashionably dressed or dandyized servants. Dandyism allowed black men to use clothing, gesture, irony, and humor to to transform their given identities and find new ways to embody political and social possibilities.” The exhibition also serves as the theme for the annual Met Gala, held on the first Monday in May.
Blitz, the club that shaped the 80’s’ – Design Museum in London, UK, – From September 19, 2025 to March 29, 2026
The London club Blitz was an important cultural hub in the 1980s. Not only were music trends influenced there, but extravagant fashion was also an important element. The exhibition therefore includes clothing items, drawings, photographs and videos to paint a complete picture of the club’s influence.
Iris van Herpen. Sculpting the Senses – Kunsthalle in Rotterdam, Netherlands, – From September 27, 2025 to March 2, 2026
This exhibition has already been shown in Paris. In 2025, “Iris van Herpen. Sculpting the senses” will come to the Netherlands and can be seen at the Kunsthalle in Rotterdam. The exhibition brings together fashion, contemporary art, design and science and is a “sensory exploration of the designer’s universe”.
‘Catwalk!’ – Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein – From October 25, 2025 to February 15, 2026
Catwalks are an important part of the fashion industry and can be the stage for “magical moments,” according to the Vitra Design Museum. They bring together stage design, clothing, lighting, sound and the art of performance to create a total work of art. The museum explores the development of fashion shows and takes a look behind the scenes. From the first “salons” around 1900 to the spectacular events of today. Visitors can expect videos and photographs as well as various items of clothing, invitations and stage decorations.
Bonus: As yet unnamed exhibition – Louvre in Paris, France, – from January 24, 2025 to July 21, 2025
Although this exhibition is set to take place soon, very little is known about it. In fall 2023, it was reported that the Louvre would be setting up its own fashion exhibition. At the time, the exhibition did not have a name, and at the time of writing, no such exhibition can be found on the Paris museum’s website. However, media reports mentioned the opening date: January 24, 2025. Several designers are inspired by the contents of the Louvre, including the late Karl Lagerfeld. Therefore, the museum examines the influence that museums can have on fashion designers.