When Fashion Meets Paganini
When Fashion Meets Paganini
The exhibition ‘When Fashion Meets Paganini’ is a creative and collaborative project bringing together students from HELMo Mode, their international partners and Beau Bizarre, centred on sustainable fashion, upcycled textiles and design.
It echoes the exhibition *When Paganini Meets Ysaÿe: The Devils’ Violins*, on display at the Grand Curtius, just a stone’s throw away, and dedicated to the violin virtuoso Niccolò Paganini, born in 1782.
As part of the exhibition *When Paganini Meets Ysaÿe: The Devils’ Violins*, the Grand Curtius invited students from HELMo Mode to explore Paganini’s world and interpret it through textile design.
Paganini is, of course, renowned for his immense talent as a violinist. But the exhibition also shows how, over time, a veritable legend grew up around him. His appearance, his personality, his spectacular playing and the image of the ‘devil’s violinist’ played a major part in creating this extraordinary figure.
It was this aspect that served as the starting point for the project. After discovering Paganini’s life and work, the students were invited to select elements from his world that could inspire their own creative work. The aim was to offer a personal interpretation of this figure and of how his image can still resonate today.
To create their designs, the students worked with second-hand clothing provided by the Liège-based shop ‘Beaux Bizarre’. These items were transformed, repurposed or incorporated into the designs as part of an upcycling process.
The project brought highly contemporary practices, such as second-hand fashion and reuse, into the museum, whilst fostering a dialogue between heritage, education and contemporary design. These pieces are the result of this collaboration between the students, the museum and the world of Paganini.
Practical information
> 13 October to 13 December 2026
> Glass-fronted gallery of the Grand Curtius
> Free admission
Images
Creations by Helmo Mode students – Copyright Helmo Mode
1: Light green dress with an aubergine ‘spine’ top – Alix Theunissen – Davinia Menchón Martínez – Jasmin Telhai
2: Navy and orange dress – Clara Moës – Julia Coloma Rojo – Greta Lorini
3: Black/dark plum jacket and black and cream skirt – Alexandre Banssaga – Esther Fuentes Rodríguez – Luca Greggio
Image from the exhibition ‘When Paganini Meets Fashion’