The first section of the exhibition explores the origins of Diane von Furstenberg’s wrap dress through a selection of garments and sculpture that showcase the inventiveness of the dress and its historical context.

In conceiving of the wrap dress, von Furstenberg drew inspiration from the wraparound tops she spotted ballerinas wearing in Paris. Her first wrap was in fact a top, which she would come to combine with a skirt after seeing one of her customers wear them together. To this original wrap top converted into a dress, she would later add a collar, cuffs, and a partially sewn belt with loose ends to add shape and structure.

Von Furstenberg’s designs are displayed alongside other trailblazing female fashion icons including Donna Karen, Madame Vionnet, and Sonia Rykiel.

"I came to American with a suitcase full of dresses and hope…thanks to the wrap dress I lived the American Dream.”

- Diane von Furstenberg

This section examines von Furstenberg’s bold designs and sources of inspiration through three lenses: nature, art, and freedom. Nature is an important motif in her work and playful animal skins and plant life have been featured in her designs throughout her career. Art holds a similar prominence for her, and numerous prints have been inspired by or made in collaboration with artists such as Jackson Pollock, Konstantin Kakanias, and Andy Warhol which reflect the designer’s deep appreciation of art.

The theme of freedom is a unique part of von Furstenberg’s design ethos. It is epitomized in her wrap dress which seamlessly blends style and comfort. Her original designs catered to an emerging class of female professionals in the 1970s and became a symbol of the women’s rights movement. Originally crafted from jersey, the wrap dress is elegant yet washable, wrinkle-proof, and easy to pack. Von Furstenberg’s genius lies in how she can turn clothing into objects of design that are practical and replicable. Through large-scale production, widespread distribution, and moderate pricing (her dresses averaged $86 in-store in 1974) everyone from stay-at-home parents, to celebrities, and first ladies have loved and worn her dresses.

Also explored in this section is von Furstenberg’s deep personal connection to the theme of freedom. Having given birth to von Furstenberg just 18 months after she was liberated from a Nazi concentration camp, her mother referred to her as her “a torch of freedom.” In 2019, von Furstenberg led a successful $100 million fundraising campaign for the creation of a museum in the Statue of Liberty’s honor, a powerful testament to her connection to the torch as a symbol for generations of American immigrants.

In 1972, at just twenty-six years old, Diane von Furstenberg launched her brand and achieved remarkable success: selling millions of dresses, expanding to new markets and products, and garnering international acclaim.

A pivotal factor in her commercial success lies in her personal embodiment of her vision for women: resilient, confident, and fiercely feminine. Often serving as her own muse, she featured herself prominently in ad campaigns and marketing. In the early stages of her career, she developed a unique marketing strategy, crisscrossing the United States to meet and help women try on her designs. This approach enabled her to develop a lasting link with the public, listening to their aspirations and concerns and translating them into clothing that continues to resonate with women more than half a century later. A testament to her leadership within the fashion industry, von Furstenberg was elected President of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, remaining its head until 2019.

The title of this last section, WeAr(e)Able stories, is a play on words merging two expressions, Wearable Stories and We Are Able. It encapsulates the power von Furstenberg gives to women through her brand and her advocacy.

Beginning with a dress, von Furstenberg sought to liberate women. Since then, she has used her platform to advocate for gender equity and human rights on a global scale. In 2010, through the Diller-Von Furstenberg Family Foundation, she created the DVF Awards to honor women who display leadership, strength, and courage in their commitment to women's causes. In 2019, she launched the InCharge Platform to connect and support women globally.

“Now that I am older, I would like to spend the rest of my life using my voice, my knowledge, my connections – anything I have – to help all women become the women they want to be.”

- Diane von Furstenberg