Oh to be part of the jet set! This October, two of this year’s must-see fashion exhibitions are opening around the same time, but on opposite sides of the world. On October 11, “Yves Saint Laurent: The Perfection of Style” will open at the Seattle Art Museum, providing an opportunity to rediscover one of the great masters of 20th-century couture, while on October 21, “Viktor&Rolf: Fashion Artists” will open at the NGV International in Melbourne, offering insights to the fantastic creative duo constantly pushing at the concept of wearable art.

For those who prefer jewelry, Bulgari will have two exciting exhibitions, one in Melbourne and one in Madrid!

With so little time and so much to see, here is my pick of the upcoming exhibitions:

September 3 through December 31

Art & Sole: Fantasy Shoes from the Jane Gershon Weitzman Collection

@ Taubman Museum of Art,  Downtown Roanoke, Virginia

The exhibition feature the incredible collection of Jane Gershon Weitzman, wife of Stuart Weitzman, shoemaker extraordinaire. Over the years, she’s championed the creation of fantasy shoes created by artists to display in their stores and the exhibition will feature more than 70 inventive examples, all remarkable for their imaginative construction and elaborate adornment. Notable artists whose work will be on view at the Taubman include Joan Klimo, who designed shoes for Christian Dior, and Danielle Pollitz, who is known for her resin work.

September 23 through 15 January, 2017

1920s JAZZ AGE: Fashion and Photographs

@ https://www.ftmlondon.org/

A glittering display of haute couture and ready-to-wear fashion from 1919 to 1929, a crucial period in the evolution of the womenswear silhouette with a move away from the corseted look to embrace more fluid looks including the drop-waisted flapper dress, raised hemlines, kimonos, and silk pajamas. The exhibition aims to showcase the wide variety of fashion available at the time while also revealing the glamour, excess, frivolity, and modernity of the decade.

September 23, 2016 – January 7, 2017

Proust's Muse

@ The Museum at FIT, New York

Immortalized as the Duchess of Guermantes character by Marcel Proust in his novel “In search of Lost Time,” Élisabeth, Countess Greffulhe (1860‑1952) was a famous aristocratic beauty, with a penchant for extraordinary dresses and accessories.  This exhibition is based on 40 pieces that featured in La Mode retrouvée: Les robes trésors de la comtesse Greffulhe, an exhibition organized in Paris in 20xx by Olivier Saillard, director of the Palais Galliera, Musée de la Mode de la Ville de Paris.

 September 30 through January 29, 2017

Italian Jewels: Bulgari Style

@ NGV International, Melbourne

A spectacular display of more than 80 jewels from the Bulgari Heritage Collection, along with photographs and film, with a focus on the Dolce Vita period of the 1950s and ‘60s. The display includes emerald and diamond jewelry formerly owned by Elizabeth Taylor and a ruby and diamond necklace worn by Sophia Loren.                                                         

Oct 11, 2016 - Jan 16, 2017

Yves Saint Laurent: The Perfection of Style

@ Seattle Art Museum

“Fashion fades, style is eternal,” Yves Saint Laurent once said and this was proven true in his designs. From his iconic Mondrian dress to sketches from his time at Christian Dior that show his search for new proportions and shapes, this exhibition will offer an insight into the designer’s work and life, highlighting the significant influence he has had on womenswear, notably his pant-suits, safari jackets, and tuxedos. 

October 21 through February 26, 2017

Viktor&Rolf: Fashion Artists

@ NGV International, Melbourne

The avant-garde creations of Viktor&Rolf — an artistic partnership between Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren that has been going strong since in 1992 — will be presented in this exhibition curated by Thierry-Maxime Loriot. Not a retrospective, this exhibition will include 35 couture creations borrowed from the duo’s archive and international museum collections, along with some new pieces created especially for the exhibition, and a display of replicas of antique Victorian dolls dressed in Viktor & Rolf’s most iconic looks.

November 2 through March 12, 2017

Hair by Sam McKnight

@Sommerset House

An exhibition celebrating the master hairstylist’s remarkable 40-year career that aims to reveal his creative process and contextualize hair styling in a wider cultural significance. McKnight was instrumental in helping to develop the images of Kate Moss, Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington, and Princess Diana among many others, and the exhibition will feature some iconic images of fashion’s most memorable looks, from Princess Diana’s short, slicked back style to Madonna’s Bedtime Stories, and Tilda Swinton channeling David Bowie.

 November 8 through February 5, 2017

Masterworks: Unpacking Fashion

@ The Costume Institute, New York

The exhibition will feature significant acquisitions of the last 10 years, exploring how the museum has developed its collecting strategy to acquire iconic works by important designers. About 60 pieces will be feature ranging from the early 18th century to a Cristobal Balenciaga gown from 1964 and a John Galliano for Maison Margiela dress from 2015.

December 6 through March 6, 2017

Inside the wardrobe of the Empress Joséphine, the Château de Malmaison’s collection of women’s costumes

@ Musée national des châteaux de Malmaison et Bois-Préau, France

An unusual opportunity to see many items of clothing that once belonged to the Empress Joséphine and her daughter Hortense and to do so in the very place where they lived. The pieces are rarely displayed due to their extreme fragility, but here visitors can see how the Empress led fashion notably with her love of the innovations created by the couturier Hippolyte Leroy. Behind the superficial glitter, visitors can explore her imperial elegance, following the sometimes disjointed thread of the souvenirs of her life. The exhibition will display some magnificent dresses and court gowns, as well as daytime dresses and accessories (shawls, shoes, etc.).

December 6 through May 13, 2017

Black Fashion Designers

@ The Museum at FIT, New York

This exhibition will examine the impact of African American and African designers on the fashion industry, drawing from the museum’s permanent collection. Presenting about 70 fashion objects from 30 designers, it will include mid-century evening gowns by Anne Lowe, some of the more controversial work of Patrick Kelly from the 1980s and contemporary pieces from Lagos-based designer Maki Oh, who re-conceptualizes Nigerian traditions, and young New York-based designer Charles Harbison.

November 19 through March 12, 2017

Shoes: Pleasure and Pain

@ PEM, Massachusetts

A traveling exhibition organized by the Victoria and Albert Museum that explores creativity in footwear through more than 200 pairs of shoes, ranging from elaborate vintage designs to extravagant contemporary designs.

November 19 through January 29, 2017

Read My Pins: The Madeleine Albright Collection

An exhibition of more than 200 pins and brooches from the collection of Madeleine Albright, the former US Ambassador to the United Nations (1993–1997) and the first female Secretary of State (1997–2001). Albright used her pins as silent yet visually outspoken codes to foreign officials and the press, a shining sun or a patriotic flag would reinforce a positive alliance, while for more difficult negotiations she might bring out her wasps or snakes.

November 30 through February 26, 2017

Bvlgari and Rome

@ Thyssen Museum, Madrid

An exhibition looking at how art and architecture in Rome have provided inspiration for Bulgari’s designers. The jewelry house’s homage to the Eternal City will include pieces from the Bulgari Heritage Collection, demonstrating the subtle relationships between the jewels and the paintings, prints, and Roman monuments that have inspired them. For example, some pieces inset with cabochons recreate the city’s domes while the glitter of the gold (white or yellow) recalls the splendor of Baroque volutes, and geometrical designs reflect the pure lines of the city’s ruins.