Taylor Swift’s career spanning costume exhibition just opened at New York’s Museum of Arts and Design. On May 18th, MAD Director Tim Rodgers and Board Chair Michele Cohen, joined by her husband Marty, welcomed members and patrons for a preview of the exhibition before it opened to the public on the 20th. Guests included Susan and Larry Ach, Loreen Arbus, Christiana Baroni, Marian Burke, Patti and Michael Dweck, Alexander Hankin, Marsy Mittlemann, and Netta Rosin, along with MAD curators Elissa Auther, Barbara Paris Gifford, and Angelik Vizcarrondo Laboy. Television cameras whirled through a music filled, electric gallery all evening.
Taylor Swift: Storyteller offers a career spanning look at the artistic reinventions of the twelve time GRAMMY Award winning artist, widely regarded as one of the most prolific songwriters in music history. The exhibition includes stage costumes drawn from every era of her career, from the cheerleader and ballerina ensembles worn in the award winning music video for Shake It Off in 2014 to the sparkling ensemble featured in Bejeweled in 2022. Concert attire from couture fashion houses including Cavalli, Gucci, Louboutin, Versace, and Yves Saint Laurent is on display alongside props, jewelry, ephemera, and projections of her music videos throughout the space.
For more information, visit madmuseum.org
A Career Told Through Costume
What makes the exhibition particularly compelling is how clearly each piece traces a distinct chapter of transformation, not just in style, but in artistic identity. Moving through the gallery feels less like viewing a retrospective and more like watching an evolving narrative unfold in real time, with each costume serving as a visual marker of the creative reinvention that has defined her career. It is this storytelling through wardrobe, as much as the garments themselves, that gives the exhibition its emotional resonance.
The exhibition runs through September 4th, 2023. Timed tickets are available for $25 and include access to all museum exhibitions.
