Elsa Schiaparelli was a designer who treated clothing as a site of experimentation rather than adornment. Born in Rome in 1890, she moved to Paris in the late 1920s and quickly distinguished herself from contemporaries like Coco Chanel by embracing wit and surrealism within her work. Her collaborations with artists including Salvador Dalí and Jean Cocteau produced some of fashion’s most iconic and unconventional pieces – including the Lobster Dress, the Skeleton Dress and hats shaped like shoes. She saw fashion as inseparable from the avant-garde movements shaping interwar Europe, particularly Surrealism, which informed her playful and intellectual approach to design.
Throughout the 1930s, Schiaparelli’s house became synonymous with innovation as she introduced bold colours – most famously ‘shocking pink’ – and experimented with new materials and silhouettes that poked at traditional ideas of femininity and luxury. Yet after the Second World War, she closed her Paris house in 1954, and her legacy was, for a time, overshadowed by the rise of designers such as Christian Dior. The house of Schiaparelli was revived in the 21st century, which reaffirmed her status as a designer who fundamentally reshaped what clothing could be.
Running until November this year, the V&A has launched an exhibition charting the history of the house, featuring her work in fashion, art and performance across two world wars and up to her retirement in 1954. Alongside 200 objects – which includes garments, accessories, jewellery, paintings, photographs, sculpture, furniture, perfumes and archival materials – lesser-known pieces and a new body of research from the show’s curators will be on display. Below, assistant curator Lydia Caston spotlights five objects from the exhibition and describes their influence over the years, and impact on contemporary fashion today.
Skeleton Dress, Elsa Schiaparelli and Salvador Dalí, Circus collection, Summer 1938, Paris, silk crêpe with plastic zips, V&A: T.394&A1974, given by Ruth Ford
“This dress is the first garment you will see when you enter the exhibition and is one of the most remarkable of Elsa Schiaparelli’s career. It is indicative of her multifaceted legacy and the V&A holds the only known original of the Skeleton Dress. Her collaboration with Salvador Dalí reflects her deep connections with the leading artists of the time. The padded construction that shapes the dress’s deathly form exemplifies her predilection for employing unusual techniques to create designs that shocked.”
Evening coat, Elsa Schiaparelli with Jean Cocteau, Autumn 1937, Designed in Paris; made in London, silk jersey, gilded metal and silk thread, appliquéed silk, V&A: T.592005, given by the American Friends of the V&A
“Schiaparelli launched her Autumn 1937 collection to mark the Exposition Internationale in Paris, where she exhibited alongside other artists and designers, many reviving an aesthetic inspired by ancient Greece and Rome. In this coat Jean Cocteau blended classical motifs and surrealist techniques in his illustration of mirrored, kissing faces which, in profile, trace an urn of roses and a draped cloth. The image was embroidered onto the reverse of this evening coat, with stitched golden lines creating an illusionistic fluted column below the urn.”
Choker, Jean Schlumberger for Elsa Schiaparelli, Bustle collection, Summer 1939, Paris, silk velvet, gilt metal, given by Ruth Ford, V&A: T.4131974
“The exhibition will feature over 75 pieces of jewellery created for Elsa Schiaparelli by talented specialists and artisans. Like her fashion accessories, her jewellery was utterly unconventional for the time and was designed to be noticed. They often expressed, in miniature, the essence of each collection. Jean Schlumberger designed this golden pinecone choker for Schiaparelli’s Bustle collection of Summer 1939. It was worn by avant-garde actor and model Ruth Ford and donated to the V&A along with other Schiaparelli garments from her wardrobe.”
Lady Mount Temple, Gluck, 1936, London, Oil on canvas, Collection of Mr. Cary Stevens and Allen Green, M.D
“British aristocrat Molly Mount Temple strikes a formidable pose in this portrait. A keen follower of modern art and design, Temple chose to wear Schiaparelli and be portrayed by British painter Gluck. The artist, who rejected gender norms of the day, understood the power of dressing and picked out sartorial details, like the undulating white collar and bright red fingernails.”
White wedding ensemble, Schiaparelli by Daniel Roseberry, Autumn/Winter 2024, Paris Silk crêpe, silk satin (jacket); tulle, sequins, crystals (skirt), Tia Fine Art Limited
“Roseberry’s AW 2024 Phoenix collection explored the concept of rebirth and transformation. Inspired by Elsa Schiaparelli’s enigmatic personality and ability to reinvent herself and to create fresh design offerings season after season, each garment recognised a moment of change. The voluminous skirt in this arresting bridal piece is embroidered with shimmering silver sequins shaped like eggs, symbolising new life. Roseberry also celebrated ‘the range of what the ateliers can do’, showcasing exquisite haute couture craftsmanship.”