Westwood | Kawakubo opens at NGV International in December celebrating five decades of revolutionary fashion design.
The global-exclusive blockbuster exhibition showcases the careers of two of fashion’s most influential rule breakers, Vivienne Westwood and Rei Kawakubo, founder of Comme des Garçons. Westwood | Kawakubo brings together more than 140 designs spanning five decades, featuring works from the NGV Collection alongside international museum loans and private collections.
Both self-taught designers transformed fashion by challenging conventional ideas about taste, gender and beauty, reimagining the function and form of clothing. The exhibition includes legendary punk ensembles from the late 1970s popularised by The Sex Pistols, alongside Carrie Bradshaw’s wedding dress from Sex and the City: The Movie.
Westwood | Kawakubo
- When: 7 December 2025 to 19 April 2026
- Where: NGV International, Melbourne
- Tickets: Available via NGV website
- Companion exhibition: Let’s Party: NGV Fashion for Kids opens 28 November
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The exhibition includes nearly 40 works from a recent donation gifted by Comme des Garçons to the NGV specifically for this showcase, featuring a runway version of Rihanna’s 2017 Met Gala red carpet dress and pieces from the 2025 Spring Summer runway. The Victorian government funded the exhibition through the Major Events Fund, positioning it as both a cultural milestone and tourism drawcard.
NGV will also present Let’s Party: NGV Fashion for Kids, a free interactive exhibition opening 28 November that allows children to create party outfit designs and participate in fashion photography shoots using garments from the NGV’s Fashion and Textile Collection.
The exhibition follows NGV’s record-breaking Yayoi Kusama exhibition, which attracted more than 570,000 visitors, with 24 per cent travelling from interstate or overseas. Westwood | Kawakubo represents another world premiere for the gallery, reinforcing Melbourne’s position as a major cultural destination.
The showcase celebrates two pioneering female designers from different cultural backgrounds who shared strong creative spirits and boundary-pushing approaches to fashion. Through their extensive body of work, the exhibition invites reflection on fashion as a vehicle for self-expression and freedom.
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