Titanic & Fashion – Kunstmuseum The Hague, The Netherlands

27 Sep — 25 Jan 2026

27 September 2025 till 25 January 2026

Titanic & Fashion – The Last Dance

The End of an Era – A New Beginning

This unique exhibition, which will be shown only in The Hague, focuses on a revolutionary but underexposed period in fashion: 1908 to 1918. Corsets were cast off and bright colours replaced the soft powder tones of the Belle Époque. These are the years of rebellious innovators Paul Poiret, Coco Chanel and Lucile, the idiosyncratic British fashion designer who survived the Titanic disaster. A time of limitless confidence in technological progress, when women were fighting for the right to vote. Feminist ideas were expressed in modern, practical clothing, in a society in which class difference and exclusion was also shaped by fashion. Modern technology was gaining ground in the form of cars, telephones, airplanes and ocean liners, and fashion was sparkling with modernity on the eve of the First World War.

In Search of Happiness

The Titanic – the ‘unsinkable’ ship that sank during its maiden voyage in 1912 – carried all kinds of people, each with their own story. And all of them in search of happiness. In first class were the wealthiest passengers, dressed in the latest trends from Paris and New York, most returning from their tour of Europe. The largest group were in third class: mostly emigrants with a one-way ticket on their way to a new future in the United States. The photographs taken on Ellis Island show people like them in regional costumes from Italy, France or Ukrainian, and closer to home, from Zeeland. All together on a ship that came to symbolise both the belief in modernity and the dangers it brings with it.

Menace, dreams and resilience

Contemporary designers are returning to the dreamy, flowing lace clothing of over a century ago. Does this indicate a desire for softness in a world that is only getting harder? See-through dresses that reveal merkins (pubic wigs), designed to shock, men strapped into corsets and military-inspired outfits. John Galliano’s much-talked-about 2024 collection for Maison Margiela featured pieces that seem partly inspired by the Titanic era, in a romantic mix of then and now. This same play with gender can be seen in the collections of the Dutch designer Tess van Zalinge, who designs for a variety of sizes and uses corsets both to constrict and to emancipate. Craig Green’s creations are like protection kits for urban nomads, including outfits that incorporate life jackets: ready for an adventure or ready to flee. The exhibition also features items from Iris van Herpen’s Carte Blanche collection. Filmed underwater, it is an ode to women’s resilience.

Around Titanic & Fashion

The exhibition is accompanied by an exciting and varied public programme that will show how the story of the Titanic is not only about the past but also, surprisingly enough, about the present. A story full of resilience and optimism. More information will soon be available on the website. The Kunstmuseum has teamed up with Waanders Uitgevers to publish a catalogue, and well-known children’s book author and illustrator Mylo Freeman is creating a new addition to the museum’s series of children’s art books. These and other books will be available from the special pop-up shop. The exhibition is designed by art director Maarten Spruyt with photography and videography by Jasper Abels.

Books

Titanic & Fashion

£36.50