Discovering Marie Antoinette’s Style at the V&A

1 March 2026, by Arianwen Evans

In this week's blog post, Costume Society member Arianwen Evans reviews the V&A's current exhibition 'Marie Antoinette Style', ahead of its close on 22nd March.

Films, such as Sofia Coppola’s Oscar winning Marie Antoinette (2006), have depicted the French royal court of the late eighteenth century as a decadent confection of elegant fashion made from extravagant fabrics garnished with exquisite jewels. Several of the delectable shoes which Manolo Blahnik created for Coppola’s film are now on display as part of an exhibition sponsored by the fashion designer: ‘Marie Antoinette Style.’ Housed within Galleries 38 and 39 of the Victoria and Albert Museum, the first UK exhibition to focus on the French queen consists of six rooms featuring 250 objects, some of which have never been seen outside Versailles and France before. Dr. Sarah Grant’s curation has allowed all elements of Marie Antoinette’s life, such as furniture, portraiture, toiletries, and fashion, to be shown together for the first time. Ordered chronologically, this exhibition explores themes of autonomy, investment, and the pastoral to examine how Marie Antoinette’s personal style developed during her lifetime and has remained influential over the last 232 years of popular culture.

Although Marie Antoinette did not possess real political power, this exhibition contends that her patronage of French luxury trades afforded her considerable influence, especially over fashion and textiles. However, Marie Antoinette’s introduction to life as Queen of France was underscored by the lack of autonomy she had over her appearance. As part of her journey from Austria to France in May 1770 to marry the future King Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette was required to remove her own garments and don French attire when she arrived at an island in the Rhine River, the traditional border between the two countries. The removal of her clothing was tantamount to her Austrian identity being erased. From that moment forth she was no longer Maria Antonia, the Hapsburg Princess of Austria but Marie Antoinette, Madame la Dauphine, Queen of France.

Marie Antoinette’s successful reclamation of autonomy over her appearance is signalled by an exceptionally rare loan in the exhibition’s second room: her personal wardrobe book which records 101 silks ordered for her in 1782 which represents many of the new gowns she commissioned that year. This remarkable book highlights Marie Antoinette’s interest in the latest fashions: there are many examples Figure 1 Portrait de Marie-Antoinette à la rose, Élisabeth-Louise Vigée Le Brun © Château de Versailles, Dist. Grand Palais RMN Christophe Fouin of robe à l'anglaise (dress in the English-style which consisted of stripe silk, a fabric which was very popular during the 1770s and 1780s. A robe à l'anglaise from 1787 exhibited near the book showcases the technique of tightly pleating the back of the sumptuous pink silk satin striped material to create volume at the waist. The high volume of fabric swatches recorded within this book indicates that Marie Antoinette invested large amounts of money in fashion. The third room of this exhibition explores this theme by showcasing personal effects which have never left Versailles before. These include her dinner service from the Petit Trianon, a chateau in the grounds of Versailles for which she redesigned the interiors and landscaped the gardens between 1774 and 1785. Her redesign of this building and the creation of the Hameau de la Reine (Queen’s Hamlet) between 1783 and 1786 allowed Marie Antoinette to curate a romanticized version countryside life which she could indulge in by tending to the gardens using embellished tools which are also on display in this room. As room curves round, visitors are greeted with a row of four plinths, each set atop with a bust of the French queen emitting different scents, such as flowers from the Petit Trianon’s English gardens. However, these busts also communicate the repercussions of public resentment which was increased by her decision to retreat into this idealised version of rural life. The scents emanating from the fourth bust evoke the environment in which Marie Antoinette would live at the end of her life: a conciergerie prison cell.

The pale pink striped wallpaper emblazoned with Marie Antoinette’s golden signature gives way to a sombre deep crimson corridor. At the end is an intimate room dedicated to French queen’s final days. This part of her life is displayed sensitively with evocative personal items, such as the final note she wrote before her execution at the age of 37, which offer the visitor a moment of quiet reflection.

In similarity to Marie Antoinette’s idealised view of rural life, there was a revival of the French queen’s style in the mid-1800s which took ‘a romanticised and sentimental view’ of her. By the late 19 th Century, her image was aligned with ideas of ‘escapism and beauty, as well as decadence and debauchery.’ This robe de style (evening gown) by Boué Sœurs couples exaggerated paniers with lace and silk chiffon. This creates an homage to 18 th century evening dresses while also incorporating the pastoral iconography of appliqué flowers, evoking the Petit Trianon’s luscious gardens.

The final room of the exhibition presents a wealth of fashion influenced by Marie Antoinette’s style. Specific costume highlights are Marmalade’s Marie Antoinette drag ensemble and two multi- tiered Moschino dresses which allude to the ‘let them eat cake’ mythology. Original costumes worn by Kirsten Dunst in Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette showcase a blend of 18 th century silhouettes with contemporary styling and fabrics. A selection of shoes designed by Manolo Blahnik which appeared in the film are exhibited alongside vibrant sketches illustrating their construction.

The ‘Marie Antoinette Style’curator, Dr. Sarah Grant, said that ‘Marie Antoinette’s story has been re-told and re-purposed by each successive generation to suit its own ends.’ By charting a course through fashion trends from the late eighteenth century up to the present day with Marie Antoinette’s style at the helm, this exhibition demonstrates how studying fashion and the decorative arts strengthens our understanding of history.

The exhibition is on show at the V&A South Kensington, London, until 22nd March 2026.

To explore more fashion content from historical icons, revisit the recent 'Cecil Beaton's Fashionable World' exhibition review on our blog.