There’s a Disco Dance Floor, Party Outfit Stations and Haute Couture at the NGV’s Latest Kids Exhibition

“Growing up, parties were the highlight,” says Danielle Brustman, designer of Let’s Party! Fashion for Kids. “I can’t remember school, but I can remember dressing up for those parties. I remember a grade five disco slumber party, and I was wearing a Wham! T-shirt with fluorescent writing as a dress, fluorescent pink tights, one of those thin belts that have the little studs, and a lace glove.”

From a young age, the clothes we wear – and the parties we wear them to – can leave a lasting impression. Outfits for parties, especially, are a chance for young ones to try things out, embrace self-expression and just have a whole lot of fun. At the NGV Children’s Gallery’s new interactive, fashion-focused exhibition, capturing the fun feeling of a real party is very much the goal.

“We curated the fashion to really reflect what you would wear to a party,” says Kate Ryan, curator of children’s programs at the NGV. “It spans time, taste and aesthetics, ranging from streetwear to high fashion.”

The exhibition features party-starting pieces from the NGV’s Fashion and Textiles Collection. There’s the high fashion centrepiece – an outrageous outfit of ruffled organza titled Look 27, Top and Skirt from Japanese designer Tomo Koizumi – alongside eccentric streetwear like Jeremy Scott’s flowery, teddy bear-adorned Adidas sneakers. There are floral suits, glam rock tuxedos, idiosyncratic ballgowns and an outfit of genuine leather jacket-clad punk history from designer Des Kirwan. 

Amongst it all, interior designer Brustman has created a vibrant, swirling dream world for kids of all ages – a party within the NGV to complement the summer blockbuster Westwood | Kawakubo. There are glam rock lightning bolts, undulating walls, heart-shaped mirrors and, in the middle of it all, a colourful disco dance floor. And although it’s meant to be a young person’s bash, Brustman has made sure the party is open to everyone. 

“One of the things that’s really important for me in designing spaces for children is that there are [also] always adults that are in the space,” she says. “So ideally, it’s finding an aesthetic and a design that appeals to everybody."

Brustman has designed the space to flow through a series of interactive party stations. First stop: styling. “The children sit down at this oversized vanity mirror where they get to make their own party hat,” she says. “They can see themselves in the mirror and it’s playing on that idea of the excitement of going to a party that we all anticipate.”

Then there’s the outfit station, where young partygoers can choose between dressing up in cut-out hearts, stars or lightning bolts before heading over to the photo booth to strike a pose. Finally, in the centre of the room – ringed by mannequins modelling the NGV’s classic party outfits – is the Studio 54-style disco dance floor where the music (everything from Oasis to the viral Chicken Banana song) and lighting are controlled by pressing an oversized star on the DJ booth.

For Brustman, the hope is that the fun and fashion of a party – especially one with such a vibrant collection at its core – can inspire self-confidence in the young generations that dress up, design and dance within the Let’s Party! space.

“I hope that this exhibition inspires children to feel that they can express themselves in the way they dress – and that’s a really great thing to be reminded of,” Brustman says.

Let’s Party! Fashion for Kids: Designed by Danielle Brustman is now open until May 3, 2026 at NGV International. Entry is free.

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