True Colors

Color is far more than a surface. It speaks to our senses, signals belonging, and mirrors social orders. The new exhibition presents a fascinating cultural history of color through some 350 garments from the Wien Museum’s unique fashion collection. It reveals how closely clothing and power are intertwined and explores color as a central symbol of status, emotion, and identity.

From puce and mousy brown to lemon yellow and scarlet, a kaleidoscope of often-forgotten shades and meanings unfolds. Every color carries a story. Workwear and ball gowns, lingerie and headpieces, wooden sandals and office suits—all of them show how fluid color is in fashion and society.

What’s on view is clothing that was actually worn, in both old and new hues—not a staged presentation, but lived aesthetics. Alongside anonymous everyday pieces, the exhibition also highlights well-known Viennese designers such as Gertrud Höchsmann, Adele List, Fred Adlmüller, Helmut Lang, Schella Kann, and Susanne Bisovsky.

The exhibit traces a path from the tightly regulated 18th century to our colorfully anarchic present. It offers a panorama from poverty to luxury color as a social force that shapes society and brings fashion to life.