Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art, the forthcoming V&A exhibition and accompanying book opens at V&A South Kensington this March, and treats pioneering designer Elsa Schiaparelli’s work with the intellectual seriousness it has always deserved.

Lavishly illustrated and richly researched, the accompanying book traces how Schiaparelli detonated the polite conventions of couture, introducing Surrealism and collaborations with Dalí, Cocteau and Man Ray. Developing a practice that collapsed boundaries between disciplines, Schiaparelli scandalised with culottes at Wimbledon and created the iconic Lobster dress; these statement pieces paved the way for bold fashion.

A vivid through-line connects interwar radicalism to the contemporary house under Daniel Roseberry, where conceptual bravado continues to drive the conversation. A beautiful and pertinent reminder that fashion, at its most daring is an unruly, intelligent and strange joy, another V&A fashion exhibition worth getting out for this Spring.

Publication details:

Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art
V&A Publishing

Exhibition details:

Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art
21 March – 1 November 2026

V&A South Kensington, Sainsbury Gallery
Cromwell Road, London SW7 2RL

Book exhibition tickets and plan your visit