Dorothy Gale costume designed by Adrian, 1939, Victoria & Albert Museum.

Holly Golightly’s little black Givenchy dress. Jack Sparrow’s pirate uniform. Dorothy’s blue and white gingham pinafore dress. There’s no doubt a character’s costume helps to bring them to life. Exploring just how central costumes play in the world of cinema is the exhibition Hollywood Costume, on now until January 27, 2013 at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.

Featuring over 100 of the most iconic costumes in cinema history, including the character’s we mentioned above, as well as other favourites like Indiana Jones, Scarlett O’Hara, Darth Vader and Harry Potter, the exhibition is divided into three galleries taking visitors from Charlie Chaplin to the cutting edge designs seen today in films like Avatar.

What’s incredible is that many of these costumes have never left their private and archival collections, with many having never been shown publicly. It’s really a rare opportunity to get up-close and personal with some of your favourite cinema characters, and discover more about the costume designer’s process from script to screen.

Note: They are currently sold out until January 7, 2013. A limited amount of tickets are sold on the day of, so if you can’t book online, you should try this option, but be sure to arrive at 10 a.m. sharp!

Tickets: Starting at £15.50 per adult
Hours of Operation
Daily: 10 a.m. – 5:45 p.m.
Friday: 10 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
The exhibition closes 15 minutes prior to the museum closing.

Where to Find:
Victoria & Albert Museum
Cromwell Road
London, England SW7 2RL
vam.ac.uk