The Brooklyn Museum is hosting Iris van Herpen's first major New York exhibition, featuring over 140 haute couture looks from the Dutch fashion designer. Van Herpen, who founded her house in 2007, pioneered 3D printing in fashion and uses unconventional materials like upcycled marine debris and fermented fibers. The touring show, which originated at Paris's Musée des Arts Décoratifs, includes contemporary art, scientific objects, and natural-history specimens alongside her garments. Curated by Matthew Yokobosky, the Brooklyn iteration draws on the museum's own collections and loans from the American Museum of Natural History, the Staten Island Museum, and the Yale Peabody Museum. Highlights include a dress made with living bioluminescent algae and a re-creation of Van Herpen's atelier.
This exhibition matters because it positions fashion as a serious interdisciplinary art form, bridging couture with contemporary art, science, and natural history. Van Herpen's work challenges traditional museum categories, encouraging institutions that have not previously shown fashion to reconsider. The show reflects a broader shift toward cross-disciplinary narratives in museums, where fashion operates at the intersection of art, design, and the body. By integrating living materials and collaborating with scientists and artists, Van Herpen envisions a future where human design is not just inspired by nature but fully integrated with it.