Simone Rocha, Ashley Williams, Maison Margiela, Jenny Fax, Molly Goddard and Raf Simons have all channelled spirits of girlhood in their designs — from bedroom brooding and the depths of existential dread to coming of age in a fight against tedium. In the company of artefacts from the work of Sofia Coppola, artworks by Louise Bourgeois and archival books and magazines, garments inspired by the unfettered experience of girlhood feature in a new exhibition at MoMu – Fashion Museum Antwerp.
Image credit: Still from The Virgin Suicides,1999, directed by Sofia Coppola, © Sofia Coppola.
Tenderly curated by Elisa De Wyngaert, with guest film curation by Girlhood author Claire Marie Healy, Girls. On boredom, rebellion, and being in-between simultaneously reflects on girlhood as a social construct and a lived experience. While today’s cultural landscape is rife with imprints of girlhood, it is only in the last 300 years that a visual language for this period of adolescence has begun to take shape.
The concept of childhood itself did not exist until the late 18th century. Prior to that, there were only infants; children were considered small adults who contributed to family work and therefore lived and dressed accordingly. The romantic ideals of the early 19th century first introduced the idea of childhood as a distinct life stage, thus creating space for the unique experience of girls to evolve. De Wyngaert states, “The way girls are dressed — in art, in fashion, film, photography — is actually a language in itself. It says so much about the assumptions surrounding girlhood and their roles in society.” The changing roles and perceptions of adolescent women can be identified in how they are pictured in art. Commenting on some of the early depictions featured in the exhibition, she adds, “Girls are often portrayed as very passive. They’re on a chair, holding a kitten, playing the piano. They’re daughters of someone. They’re just there. They’re not bothering anyone.”
Image credit: Class of 1998, Veronique Branquinho Autumn-Winter 1998 for Self Service No. 8, © Photo: Anuschka Blommers & Niels Schumm
Image credit: Fumiko Imano, Yellow bath/Hitachi/Japan, 2007, © Fumiko Imano
Journeying through the exhibition, the curation leans into more contemporary representations of girlhood, with a focus on the fight for identity and empowerment — a battle often fought both within oneself and against the wider world during the surge towards adulthood. The teenage bedroom is a laboratory for experiments in self-conceptualisation and realisation, and Girls. On boredom, rebellion, and being in-between encapsulates this with precision, through three central bedroom installations. Reminding us of the vulnerability of teens, Coppola’s 1999 film The Virgin Suicides is a seminal commentary on girlhood. Original costumes from the production are displayed in the first bedroom installation, alongside a nostalgically dressed single bed and a vintage television playing clips from the film.
In the second bedroom, Taiwan-born fashion designer Fax recreates her childhood bedroom, which De Wyngaert notes was designed by Fax’s mother for use as a guest room and is therefore uncharacteristically devoid of teen paraphernalia. The absence of artefacts of adolescent identity prods the voyeuristic consciousness, and we are reminded that this period of growth is precious and should be nurtured and cherished as such.
Image credits: The Virgin Suicides in Girls. On Boredom, Rebellion and Being In-Between at MoMu–Fashion Museum Antwerp, 2025, © MoMu Antwerp, Photo: Stany Dederen (L). Jenny Fax in Girls. On Boredom, Rebellion and Being In-Between at MoMu–Fashion Museum Antwerp, 2025, © MoMu Antwerp, Photo: Stany Dederen (R).
Rebellious fashion duo Chopova Lowena take the teen aesthetic to its nth degree in the exhibition’s final bedroom. Every inch of the space speaks to the chaos of coming of age, while mirroring the brash visual language the brand celebrates in its clothing designs.
From Jim Britt’s 1976 Sisters photography series, featured in Comme des Garçons’ now iconic A/W88 campaign, to Anuschka Blommers and Niels Schumm’s Class Veronique Branquinho-clad Class of 1998 shoot for Self Service No.8 magazine, the manufactured moments of pop culture highlighted by De Wyngaert’s curation remind us that fashion is obsessed with girlhood. Simultaneously wrestling with the idea of finding their place in the world while somehow learning how to protect a tender sense of self results in inimitable moments of self-expression — the kind creatives will spend a lifetime in pursuit of.
Image credit: Chopova Lowena in Girls. On Boredom, Rebellion and Being In-Between at MoMu–Fashion Museum Antwerp, 2025, © MoMu Antwerp, Photo: Stany Dederen
Looks from Rocha, Williams and Goddard reflect an era of reclamation of girlish femininity, bringing Pepto-Bismol pink, long blonde braids and layer after layer of chiffon to the runway like a middle finger to the style standards enforced on women for generations in the name of being taken seriously. The representation of this cotton-candy brand of feminist iconography has already inspired debate among the exhibition’s visitors, with some questioning the possibility of a perceived infantilisation of women, while others champion the power of reclaiming motifs long condemned as either unserious or unintelligent. Garments and accessories featured in the exhibition are bold, brave and unapologetic, and what becomes clear by the end is that it is not girls who have learned from fashion, but fashion that has learned from girls.
See Girls. On boredom, rebellion, and being in-between until 1 February 2026 at MoMu – Fashion Museum Antwerp.
