There is something inherently theatrical about fashion. The Vitra Design Museum in Basel captures this perfectly in its new exhibition, Catwalk: The Art of the Fashion Show. Rather than just displaying clothes, the show treats the runway itself as a work of art—a stage where architecture, lighting, music, choreography, and props come together to tell a story.

Tightly curated, the exhibition spans more than a century, from the quiet Parisian salons of the early 1900s to the digital spectacles of today. Names like Chanel, Dior, Balenciaga, Yohji Yamamoto, and Prada punctuate the timeline, but the exhibition is as much about ideas as it is about designers.

The exhibition starts by highlighting Charles Frederick Worth, who famously replaced mannequins with live models, and Gabrielle Chanel, whose mirrored staircase became a stage in its own right. One particularly charming section revisits the 1945 Théâtre de la Mode, where miniature mannequins carried tiny collections in a post-war effort to revive French couture.

The emergence of prêt-à-porter and the democratisation of fashion are the topics of the second room. The runway here overflows into galleries, cafés, and even swimming pools. The 1973 Battle of Versailles Fashion Show, in which French couture was opposed by American designers, was a turning point for representation as well as fashion. Japanese designers also defied Parisian conventions by introducing daring new concepts and silhouettes to the world market.

Film snippets, music, and memorable moments are used to depict the 1990s: Christy Turlington, Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, and Cindy Crawford singing along to George Michael; Margiela sending models down the catwalk with heavily makeup-covered faces, defying expectations. The exhibition demonstrates how fashion has always had the capacity to both subtly rebel and create spectacle.

The last sections examine how runway displays evolved into media events in the twenty-first century. Fashion's changing dialogue with society is exemplified by Balenciaga's daring prosthetics, McQueen's chequerboard finales, and Lagerfeld's Chanel supermarket. Designers continued to perform even throughout the pandemic; for example, Prada streamed a multi-room, textured presentation online, reminding us that the power of the runway lies not only in the clothing but also in the narrative it tells.

Catwalk: The Art of the Fashion Show at Vitra Design Museum, 18 October 2025 – 15 February 2026 and opening at V&A Dundee 3 April – 17 January 2027.