Salvador Dalí in the wardrobe: Schiaparelli exhibition opens in London

The Victoria and Albert Museum in London is preparing a true celebration of fashion and art. This Saturday, March 28, the exhibition “Schiaparelli: Fashion as Art” opens — the first full-scale retrospective in the UK dedicated entirely to the legendary fashion house Schiaparelli.

Visitors will trace the brand’s journey from Elsa Schiaparelli’s bold surrealist experiments in the 1920s to the contemporary vision of Creative Director Daniel Roseberry. Over 400 objects are on display, including 100 ensembles, 50 works of art, jewelry, and rare archival pieces.

The exhibition is divided into four thematic sections:

• “Creating the Modern Wardrobe” highlights how Elsa transformed everyday clothing into avant-garde art, including a rare 1927 trompe-l’oeil sweater.
• “Creative Constellations” showcases her legendary collaborations with surrealists of the 1920s–30s, featuring iconic dresses like Skeleton (1938), Tears (1938), and Lobster (1937), alongside Dalí’s Shell Telephone and drawings by Jean Cocteau.
• “Beyond Paris” explores Schiaparelli’s influence on theatre and cinema in Britain, France, and the U.S., displaying costumes for Mae West, sleek ensembles for Marlene Dietrich, and Elsa’s rare mother-of-pearl wedding gown.
• “The Golden Thread” brings the story into the present, highlighting Roseberry’s work: the sparkling robotic child from the Spring/Summer 2024 couture show, a modern Skeleton dress for Dua Lipa at the 2024 Golden Globes, and Ariana Grande’s glittering gown at the 2025 Oscars.

The exhibition demonstrates how Schiaparelli blurs the line between commercial fashion and high art, reimagining beauty and style for a new era.

It will run until November 8, 2026, in the Sainsbury Gallery at the Victoria and Albert Museum.