The Louvre Museum in Paris launched an exhibition titled "Louvre Couture: Art Objects, Fashion Objects," running from January 24 to July 21, 2025. This event marks the first time the museum has dedicated an exclusive exhibition to fashion, focusing on the relationship between haute couture and the decorative arts.
The exhibition presents 100 outfits and accessories from 45 fashion houses and designers, including Chanel, Balenciaga, Versace, and Yves Saint Laurent, with pieces dating from 1960 to 2025. Visitors are invited to explore a dialogue between garments, accessories, and works of art within the museum's spaces dedicated to decorative arts. The approach reveals the historical and artistic connections between fashion and the decorative arts, offering a fresh perspective on both contemporary fashion and historical artifacts.
"Paris is the capital of fashion; there is a very close relationship between fashion houses and Paris, and the Louvre is in the heart of Paris," said Olivier Gabet, the director of the Louvre's Department of Decorative Arts and curator of the exhibition, at the inauguration. Gabet aims to encourage visitors to "look at the collections differently" and make the museum feel more accessible to a diverse audience. "The Louvre is much more than the 'Mona Lisa,'" he stated.
The "Louvre Couture" exhibition is displayed alongside decorative arts from Ancient Greece to France’s Second Empire. Gilded silver reliquaries with sculpted hands stand next to a pair of Hermès gloves, creating a visual conversation between the past and present. This setting allows for a dialogue between historical arts and contemporary fashion, revealing how fashion drew inspiration from art across centuries.
Notable pieces in the exhibition include a silk ball gown designed by John Galliano for Dior, which occupies the center of a room dedicated to Louis XIV. The room is adorned with gilded furniture and imposing portraits of the Sun King. Alexander McQueen's platform "Armadillo" shoes from 2011 are displayed next to a 17th-century plate depicting life in a pond.
The exhibition also includes creations from the last stage of Cristóbal Balenciaga to the designs of Iris Van Herpen, inspired by Gothic architecture. This collection occupies nearly 9,000 square meters of exhibition space, presenting seventy iconic silhouettes alongside thirty accessories from renowned designers.
"It's the first time that the Louvre introduces fashion into the museum in this way," explained Gabet.
In conjunction with the exhibition, the Louvre is hosting a fundraising gala, "Le Grand Dîner du Louvre," during Paris Fashion Week in March. The event aims to create a new meeting point between fashion, art, and philanthropy. More than thirty tables were made available for the gala, and the fundraising goal of €1 million has already been exceeded. Dinner will be served among the marble sculptures in the glass-roofed Cour Marly, followed by dancing under the famous Louvre Pyramid.
The "Louvre Couture" exhibition pays homage to fashion designers who have long been inspired by the museum's collections. A black velvet gown by Demna for Balenciaga is displayed alongside decorative objects from the Byzantine era, illustrating the creative interplay between fashion and art.
This article was written in collaboration with generative AI company Alchemiq