Martin Grant retrospective exhibition opens in Australia

Paris-based Australian-born fashion designer Martin Grant is being celebrated with his first major career retrospective exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV), Melbourne, Australia.

The ‘Martin Grant’ exhibition runs until January 26, 2026, and features close to 100 works drawn from the NGV collection, alongside more than 40 loans from the designer's own personal archive and private collections, charting Grant's four-decade career from the mid-1980s to the present day.

The exhibition offers unprecedented insight into Grant’s creative process with photography, sketches, artworks, press clippings and runway footage, spotlighting designs worn by celebrities and highlighting how the designer has become known for his contemporary reinterpretations of wardrobe classics, including impeccably tailored suiting, exquisitely draped gowns and dramatic capes and jumpsuits.

Exhibition highlights include a visual display of eveningwear and ballgowns in monochromatic hues presented on specially designed invisible mannequins that create the illusion of the garments floating in mid-air. The selection was chosen to showcase Grant’s refined understanding of structure, volume and draping in a range of exquisite fabrics, including silk taffeta, draped wool and shimmering metallics.

There are also dedications to Grant’s signature outerwear, including tailored jackets, peacoats and trench coats that balance minimalism with a playful approach to proportion, underpinned by rigorous pattern-cutting, as well as a section sharing Grant’s recalibration of historical silhouettes and period references into contemporary classics, from his iconic leather Napolean coat and red wool Joan of Arc dress, respectively worn by Naomi Campbell and Cate Blanchett.

National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne opens exhibition dedicated to Australian designer Martin Grant

The exhibition also reflects on Grant’s' early years in Melbourne and Paris and showcases designs worn by celebrities, including Cate Blanchett, Lee Radziwill, Catherine Baba, Rebel Wilson and Lady Gaga in fashion editorials and runway presentations. The garments are displayed alongside editorial and portrait photography by several leading photographers documenting his work.

Tony Ellwood, director of the NGV, said in a statement: “Martin Grant is a self-taught, Melbourne-born designer who has truly captured the attention of the international fashion world. With a background in sculpture, he approaches fashion with a sculptor’s eye, creating garments that have a direct formal relationship to the body.

“In 2024, Grant gifted the NGV more than 200 works from his own personal archive, transforming our holdings of his work and making ours the most significant collection anywhere in the world. Through this exhibition – Martin’s first full career retrospective – we hope to share his refined artistry and aesthetic sensibilities with all Victorians and visitors alike.”

Commenting on the exhibition, Grant added: “The National Gallery of Victoria houses the largest and richest fashion collection in the southern hemisphere. To have my design career represented in this exhibition in Melbourne, the city of my birth, is a true privilege and an honour.”