Acts of Recognition

From 26 June to 18 October 2026, the Garment Museum is putting on an exhibition titled Acts of Recognition, a collective project that invites reflection on the museum’s collections, its history and the internal processes that enable their conservation and research. The exhibition offers an ever-changing and experimental journey that combines the past and the present to reflect on the institution’s future. Through a selection of objects that vary greatly in terms of types, materials and uses, the project invites visitors to discover the richness and diversity of the collections held by the Costume Museum, while also giving the public an insight into the technical and scientific work that is usually carried out behind the scenes, away from the exhibition galleries. Taking a fun, participatory approach, Acts of Recognition is organised around associations and connections between pieces, which the viewer must identify, link and interpret. Many of the objects on display are linked to the everyday habits of Spanish society over the last two centuries, thereby fostering a direct connection between the collection and collective memory. The exhibition also explores concepts such as identity, cataloguing and museum conservation, showing how the artefacts that make up the museum’s ethnological heritage are documented, researched and preserved. The project is curated collectively by various technical departments within the institution.