In Shape
With the exhibition ‘In Shape’, the Design Museum Den Bosch is showing how the human body has been shaped, modelled and staged for centuries from 7 February to 14 June 2026. In an age of fitness routines, beauty filters and cosmetic procedures, the body is increasingly becoming a project. The show reveals that the pursuit of physical perfection is not a new development, but is deeply rooted in the history of design and fashion.
The exhibition was created in collaboration with art historian Dirk-Jan List, an expert in historical underwear with over 30 years of research experience. As a consultant to the exhibition, he is making his extensive collection of body-shaping garments available.
The Body as Form
The exhibition explores how underwear was used specifically to emphasise and control individual parts of the body such as the shoulders, chest, waist, hips, buttocks and legs. Monarchs and social elites shaped fashion trends, but it was underwear that shaped the body itself and made it an expression of power, discipline and social order. ‘In Shape’ illustrates how design not only shapes clothing, but also actively shapes the human body – and invites visitors to reflect on seduction, control and the risks of this malleability.
