Unwrapped: Dianne von Furstenberg Reflects on her Influence as Skirball Exhibit Opens
"When I was young, I didn't know what I wanted to do, but I knew the kind of woman I wanted to be — I wanted to be a woman in charge," says fashion icon Diane von Furstenberg by phone just a few weeks before the North American debut of a new exhibit on her life at the Skirball Cultural Center. "I became a woman in charge because of a little dress. And therefore, my thing has always been to inspire all women to be who they want to be." "Woman Before Fashion" opens to the public this Friday, Oct. 17 and runs through Aug. 31, 2025 at the Skirball. This weekend, the center screens the Hulu biographical documentary Woman in Charge to compliment the show and docent-led public and private tours begin in November for those who'd like to delve deeper into the influence of DVF. On Tuesday, a host of celebrity fans — Cindy Crawford, Rachel Zoe, Jessica Alba, Lauren Sanchez and more — came out to celebrate the influential designer at the media preview.
With over 60 pieces from her archives, it's a celebratory look at DVF's impact on fashion, feminism and culture. And it's inspiring not just to women and fashion lovers but anyone seeking to achieve their dreams. Curated by Nicolas Lor (who helmed DVF's first retrospective at the Fashion & Lace Museum in her native Brussels), the exhibit explores more personal territory than LACMA's "Journey of a Dress" — which came to town 10 years ago. "She was making designs for women at a time when dressing in a very feminine way in the workplace was novel and groundbreaking," says Skirball curator Cate Thurston, who worked with Lor. "In the 1960s and '70s, you see a generation of women breaking into professional fields previously occupied only by men, and Diane was creating clothing for them."
As seen in the June 2024 Hulu doc, DVF's namesake business has changed a lot over the years — from running her own shops to making licensing deals and collaborating with QVC (owned by her husband Barry Diller) and more recently, a collab with Target. But her vision, style and signature wrap dress have proved timeless, and been embraced by Hollywood. Cybill Shepherd wears one in Martin Scorsese's 1976 classic Taxi Driver; Amy Adams dons the dress in David O. Russell's Oscar-winning 2013 film American Hustle; and it's appeared in shows like The Sopranos, Sex and the City and The White Lotus. "Every 20 years or so the young girls discover it," she tells Los Angeles of the frock's enduring popularity. "Because it's flattering, it's about movement and freedom... so are the prints, which all come from nature."
