Giorgio Armani Toasts 20 Years of Armani Privé With a Museum Show

In 2015, Giorgio Armani marked the 40th anniversary of his namesake fashion brand with the opening of Armani/Silos in Milan, a museum dedicated to the designer’s work as well as a place for him to celebrate other mavericks of fashion and art. Now, on the eve of Armani’s 50th anniversary (and the 20th anniversary of Armani Privé), the designer has curated a new show for the space. Titled Giorgio Armani Privé 2005-2025: Twenty Years of Haute Couture, the exhibition, which opens on May 21 in Paris, explores two decades of Armani’s fait-main creations.

The designer curated the exhibition, which features around 150 garments. The clothing will be displayed throughout the museum, accompanied by the utilization of scent and sound. The fragrance Bois d’Encens, from the Armani/Privé Haute Couture Fragrance collection, will be diffused around the room, while an original soundtrack plays over the speakers.

Of course, there will be no lack of sparkle in the exhibition, as Armani is known for his love of sequined fabrics that bear rare stones, and hand-crafted embroidery. With Giorgio Armani Privé 2005-2025, viewers will be able to track two decades of Armani’s designs, which have long captivated couture fans and celebrities alike, making Armani Privé a go-to choice for many red carpet looks. One specific dress, worn by Anne Hathaway to the Oscars in 2009, is included in the exhibition for up-close inspection.

Ten years ago, Armani spent almost $55 million to open his Via Bergognone museum in Milan; it is housed in a space comprised of abandoned storage containers built by Nestlé in the ’50s. “The idea of the museum is to show my work since the start,” Armani told W back in 2015, just months after the opening during the Milan Expo. He, therefore, chose to keep the design of the building simple. “I wanted my clothes to be the stars of the show, not the architecture,” he said.

Known for being extremely meticulous, Armani eschewed delegation and chose to act as the architect, interior designer, curator, and director of Armani/Silos from the beginning. Since then, the museum has hosted shows featuring photographers like Larry Fink, Paolo Ventura, and Peter Lindbergh. In 2019, the designer adapted a show created for Centre Pompidou in France about Tadao Ando, the architect who designed Armani Teatro—which is located across the street from Armani/Silos. That same year, Armani/Silos opened Accents of Style, a retrospective of Armani accessories. Now, with Armani Privé 2005-2025, the designer’s couture creations will be put on display in Milan for the first time, as the collections are usually shown in Paris during couture week.

“In my haute couture collections, I express my vision of style and elegance through the art of craftsmanship and savoir-faire: only here am I free to do so without limits,” Armani said in the exhibition’s press release. “Twenty years of Giorgio Armani Privé have been an extraordinary, liberating journey. Now, I want to share it with a wider audience, inviting them into this dream of mine: a dream of dresses woven from imagination and grace—a very special world that takes on new meaning in this exhibition.”

Giorgio Armani Privé 2005-2025: Twenty Years of Haute Couture is on display at Armani/Silos from May 21, 2025 until the end of the year.