It’s the ultimate form of window-shopping: You go to a museum and make a mental note of the clothing you wish you could wear. Maybe you’re drawn to Flaming June’s sheer marigold dress, or Nike of Samothrace’s draped, wind-swept tunic, or Madame X’s sumptuous velvet gown held up by a delicate chain strap.
This year, the Costume Institute’s spring exhibition, “Costume Art,” concerns itself with how bodies interact with fashion, and how fashion interacts with art—so we asked Vogue staffers and friends to share their favorite piece of clothing from a painting, sculpture, or fine-art photograph. Where some were transfixed by figures from the past (just take stylist Bailey Moon, who has long been obsessed with Anne Boleyn, or Chloe Malle, who admires the Comtesse d’Haussonville’s styling chops), others, like Vogue’s Nicole Phelps, were drawn to more abstract representations of clothing, such as the gleaming gold robes in Klimt’s The Kiss.
But that’s not all. See the rest of our favorite fashion moments from art below.
Primavera by Sandro Botticelli, ca. 1480
My dad passed down his love of Greek mythology and my mom her love of Botticelli, so Primavera is particularly exalted in my book. I’ve always been especially drawn to Botticelli’s ability to depict diaphaneity—particularly with the Three Graces. While they’re linked by their breezy, sheer white dresses, each has her own distinct look: Pleasure in a gathered number with a brooch at her sternum, Chastity in a drapey one-shoulder, and Beauty in romantic puffed sleeves, a gold necklace, and a pearl headpiece. —Hannah Jackson, fashion writer
Portrait of Anne Boleyn, artist unknown, late 16th century
Anne Boleyn has always been a style icon of mine—mainly because we don’t have an undisputed and accurate piece of art of her; Henry VIII ordered much of her imagery destroyed after her execution. So we have been left to imagine much of the garments and details of her aesthetic. I love this piece because the garment is structured and serves almost as her armor—she’s in control. And yet she’s softened the severity of the dress with the personalized pendant and delicate trims. It’s commanding and strong, made even more so by knowing her eventual fate. —Bailey Moon, stylist
St. Apollonia by Francisco de Zurbarán, ca. 1636
These delicious colors, plus a bow or two and a halo—that’s pretty much fashion heaven if you ask me. —Laird Borrelli-Persson, archive editor
Portrait of Comtesse d’Haussonville by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, 1845
I’ve always loved the perfect blue of the Comtesse d’Haussonville’s dress. It’s a mixture of ice and the sky on a pre-spring day, and the sheen of the taffeta makes it even more irresistible. I also love the power pairing of that icy blue with the fire red hair bow. —Chloe Malle, head of editorial content, Vogue US
Olympia by Edouard Manet, 1863
In my opinion, some of the most incredibly rendered textile patterns in art exist in the work of Manet, which is, in a way, contradictory—he is most famous for painting naked ladies. It doesn’t matter—the clothes don’t have to be “on” to be good, right? The embroidered robe at the feet of his nude odalisque, Olympia, would, I think, make even Connor Ives or Galliano see hearts! —Sarah Hoover, art historian and author of The Motherload
Joan of Arc by John Everett Millais, 1865
I’ve always been drawn to Joan of Arc by John Everett Millais for the way it balances strength and femininity. Armor covers her upper body, while a swath of red fabric softens her lower half. It doesn't erase her femininity—it holds it alongside her strength. Even in prayer, she seems self-possessed rather than subservient, bracing for the battle ahead. —Stephen Biga, designer, Mel Usine
The Circle of the Rue Royale by James Tissot, 1868
I saw this massive painting at the Musée d'Orsay and was instantly captured by the dandiness of it all, but my eyes went specifically to the detail of the pants of the man sitting down on the left. There’s an exquisite quality in the way the fabric was captured by James Tissot. You know exactly how the pants would feel to the touch. It was a museum visit turned into shopping inspo! —Diego Portillo, visuals editor
Dr. Pozzi at Home by John Singer Sargent, 1881
John Singer Sargent’s Doctor Pozzi represents one of the great moments of fashion in art with the overwhelming visual impact of the red robe against crimson curtains, punched through with white ruffles, pointy shoe, and his endless fingers. Impossibly chic yet in an informal dressing gown, Dr. Pozzi evokes the power of a Church Cardinal and at the same time the sensuality of a brothel—fitting for art history’s most famous gynecologist. —Aimee Ng, Peter Jay Sharp Chief Curator, The Frick
Girl in White by Vincent van Gogh, 1890
I would so wear this dress and hat if they were available today. The high collar, structured shoulders, and floral print are some of my favorite qualities in a dress! Just give me a straw bag and a strappy sandal, and there’s my perfect summer ’fit. —Irene Kim, production & editorial associate, Replica Handbag Store Runway
Flaming June by Sir Frederic Leighton, 1895
I’ve been a fan of Sir Frederic Leighton’s Flaming June since I first saw it in high school. I love the drapery of the subject’s vibrant orange dress, how it almost looks like she’s swimming, the sheer material flowing over her body as she sleeps. You can feel the languid summer heat emanating from the painting, the dress like a glowing sun. —Anna Grace Lee, lifestyle writer
Mr. and Mrs. I. N. Phelps Stokes by John Singer Sargent, 1897
I hate to be basic and choose a Sargent, but I’ve always loved the jaunty, somewhat masculine look of Mrs. I. N. Phelps Stokes at the Met. The black jacket, the boater, the hand on her hip! She looks like a very staunch character indeed. —Marley Marius, senior features and news editor
The Kiss by Gustav Klimt, 1907-08
I slept under a giant poster of Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss my junior year in college. I can’t look at the lovers’ luminous robes—hers aswirl with florals, his a mesmerizing geometric grid—without thinking of My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless album and a James Dean-ish boyfriend who broke my heart.—Nicole Phelps, global fashion news & features director
Mäda Primavesi (1903-2000) by Gustav Klimt, 1912-13
I am beyond obsessed with the flower-bedecked dress in Gustav Klimt’s Mäda Primavesi, which I got the opportunity to see in person at the Met when I was in New York for the holidays. Isn’t it kind of giving that rose-and-organza Simone Rocha frock that our fearless leader Chloe Malle wore to pre-Met in 2024? —Emma Specter, culture writer
Self-Portrait (I Am In Training…Don’t Kiss Me) by Claude Cahun, 1927
My favorite piece of clothing has to be Claude Cahun’s T-shirt in her autoportrait series. Dressed as a weightlifter, she wears a shirt emblazoned with the words “I am in training don’t kiss me.” The image is lasting in my mind—an incredible blend of surrealism and humor. A lesser remembered artist, Cahun was radical for her photography’s exploration of gender in a way that feels incredibly modern. —Alexandra Hildreth, fashion news writer, Replica Handbag Store Runway
Chop Suey by Edward Hopper, 1929
One of my favorite paintings is Chop Suey by Edward Hopper. The woman facing the viewer wears a cloche hat, so symbolic of the era, which echoes a pattern of partial views throughout the painting. Like the window cropping the restaurant sign, the hat’s low brim serves as a veil—we see just enough, and complete the rest in our minds. It feels like a perfect splice of American urban life. —John Mok, senior production manager
Birthday by Dorothea Tanning, 1942
Costume is a tool Dorothea Tanning’s art often employed to unspool ideas about self-liberation, renewal, transformation. Here, she’s bare-chested, wearing a dandy-like, ruched silk jacket in violet with lacy cuffs and a draped skirt with a bustle made, maybe, of olive-green, alienesque creatures or seaweedy tendrils. It feels sensual, a little sinister, shape-shifting—quite Schiap. —Anna Cafolla, news editor
Vues de dos - Juin by Malick Sidibé, 2003-2004
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The first thing that comes to mind when anyone brings up fashion and art is the late Malian photographer, Malick Sidibé! I’m probably biased because I’m half Malian, but I think some of the best examples of genuine and effortless style comes from ’60s and ’70s West African studio portraiture. The patterns, the sunglasses, the attitude, the props! It’s almost impossible to choose just one image because together the portraits create a manifesto of style and freedom. Freedom not only in fashion but also because Sidibe’s subjects were living in a newly independent Mali. The exquisite taste along with the intimacy and joy in the portraits convey that beautifully. —Hannah Traore, galerist, Hannah Traore Gallery
Untitled by John Currin, 2017
My favorite would have to be John Currin’s September 2017 painting of Jennifer Lawrence in a fabulous Miu Miu hat and bag. We were so thrilled he agreed to do the portrait for our 125th anniversary, and it resulted in one of our best covers of all time. —Virginia Smith, global fashion network director
Wakitantanka (Strong-Willed) Pandemic Survivalist by Juanita Growing Thunder Fogarty, 2021
I always love the traditional garments that Indigenous artist Juanita Growing Thunder Fogarty dresses her soft sculptures in. Draped in intricate beadwork, dentalium shells, and hides, her art pieces represent the best of cultural couture. —Christian Allaire, senior fashion writer
