Commissioned by the National Gallery of Victoria, Studio Peter King designed this world-premiere exhibition bringing together two of the most influential fashion designers of our time: Vivienne Westwood and Rei Kawakubo. The exhibition extends NGV's signature curatorial approach of presenting two creative practitioners side by side, drawing out both their shared radicalism and their fundamental differences.

Westwood | Kawakubo was highly commended in the Installation Design category of the Australian Interior Design Awards.

Rather than borrowing either designer's visual language, the exhibition introduces its own spatial concept, built on the idea of chirality — where two forms are alike but can never be mirrored. That tension between symmetry and difference shapes the entire design: paired forms, near-symmetry, and deliberate misalignment, echoing how the two designers move in parallel but never in imitation.

The body became the organising principle for the exhibition. Parts of the body that exhibit symmetry — the brain, the spine, the heart, a pair of eyes, a pair of hands — were adopted as metaphors for structuring a sequence of distinct, immersive galleries.

The Brain:
The opening gallery is inspired by the left and right hemispheres of the brain. Westwood's earliest collections are explored on the left side of the room, while Kawakubo's more recent work unfolds in parallel on the right — ideas in tension, mirrored but not matched. Lightbulbs threaded through chains, ruptured walls and fractured surfaces speak to disruption, intellect and radical rethinking. A textile ceiling installation, developed and fabricated by Tetrik Studio, defines the space.

The Heart:
A small, intensely saturated red room brings together works by both designers, united by a shared fascination with historical silhouette. A geometric lighting design traced across the ceiling — conceived from an intersecting heart and cross, inspired by the insignias of both design houses — pulses with a heartbeat in sync with a bespoke video and audio environment, making this one of the most visceral rooms in the exhibition.

The Eyes:
Two semicircular rooms intersect at a shared threshold, creating a sequence of curved spaces. The first half presents work informed by a shared interest in tailoring — precise, structural, considered — with a central dais flanked by two ocular windows, each framing a single work like a sentinel looking over the display. The second room shifts register, presenting collections that explore a wider range of material techniques, from draping to slashing, within the same curved geometry.

The Spine:
A central corridor flanked by rib-like columns connects a series of smaller galleries exploring different themes, tying the exhibition together while letting each room stay distinct. Saturated in a fleshy purple, this space examines both designers' fascination with the human body and how it interacts with clothing.

The Hands:
The final room takes its cue from a pair of hands, offering up their work to the world — a closing gesture that brings the exhibition's parallel narratives together.

Client: National Gallery of Victoria
Curators: Katie Somerville and Danielle Whitfield, Meg Slater, Charlotte Botica, Coral Guan
Exhibition Design: Studio Peter King in collaboration with Mono Studio and Steph Yap Design in partnership with NGV Design
Exhibition Identity: 3 Deep Design
Audio Visual: NGV Multimedia
Lighting Design: NGV in collaboration with Sean & Horn
Fabrication: Show Works, Greenspec Events, Savio Projects, Tetrik Studio, Higgins Coatings
Photos by Sean Fennessey courtesy of NGV
Video courtesy of NGV