Iris van Herpen's 'Sculpting the Senses' Opens at Brooklyn Museum

The traveling exhibition 'Iris van Herpen: Sculpting the Senses' makes its North American debut at the Brooklyn Museum from May 16 to December 6, 2026. Previously shown in Paris, Brisbane, Singapore, and Rotterdam, the retrospective traces nearly two decades of the Dutch couturière's work. Van Herpen, raised in Wamel, Netherlands, trained under Alexander McQueen before opening her own studio in 2007. By age twenty-seven, she became one of the youngest designers invited to join the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture in Paris. The exhibition opens with the 'dissolving' bubble dress worn by Eileen Gu at the 2026 Met Gala. Recurring motifs include water, explored through blown glass, thermoformed Plexiglas, and suminagashi marbling. Prints by biologist Ernst Haeckel appear throughout. The 'Alchemical Atelier' recreates van Herpen's Amsterdam studio, showcasing material experiments. Later sections explore lucid dreaming, synesthesia, and anatomical forms referencing Michelangelo and Thomas Eakins. A Cabinet of Curiosities displays garments alongside insects, butterflies, and scientific specimens. The finale, 'Cosmic Bloom,' features a metallic circular structure inspired by astronomical photography and James Webb Space Telescope imagery.