Taylor Swift is back in London on August 15th and two Taylor Swift exhibitions have opened in London Taylor Swift | Songbook Trail at the V&A and Taylor on Tour: A Photo Exhibition at Wembley Park.
‘Taylor on Tour: A Photo Exhibition’ an open-air and completely free photo exhibition has opened at Wembley Park’s Outdoor Photo Gallery presenting 17 large-format photographs showcasing her talent as a live performer and inviting fans to re-live their favourite moments.
The exhibition is part of the Summer of Swift, taking over the north London cultural district this season. Following her outstanding performances at Wembley Stadium this June, the international icon is returning August 15th, 16th, 17th, 19th, and 20th
From intimate moments that showcase Swift’s magnetic stage presence to the elaborate costumes and innovative set designs that have become symbols of the singer’s artistic vision, the images on display offer a glimpse into Taylor Swift’s success across the world. All are from professional Getty press photographers, who have been following Swift and her Eras tour, which has so far reached almost 20 countries across North America, Latin America, Asia, Australia and Europe. The collection is further enriched by the inclusion of earlier photographs from Taylor Swift’s 2018 Reputation Tour, offering a comprehensive view of the artist’s evolving live performances and the global impact of her music.
The ‘Taylor On Tour’ exhibition is a celebration of Taylor Swift’s exceptional artistry as a live performer, captured through the lens of some of the world’s most talented concert photographers. This stunning collection of images highlights Swift’s record-breaking achievements, her connection with fans and magnetic stage presence. Swifties and newcomers alike are invited to witness Taylor Swift’s creativity at Wembley Park, home of some of the most iconic music moments in history.
Claudio Giambrone, Curator of ‘Taylor on Tour: A Photo Exhibition’ at Wembley Park,
And over at the V&A opening, this Saturday 27th July is Taylor Swift | Songbook Trail – 13 installations featuring objects from Taylor Swift’s personal archive on temporary display across the V&A this summer.
Each theatrical display will include a selection of objects on loan from the artist presented in spectacular galleries at V&A South Kensington, as part of a free trail across the museum. Taylor Swift | Songbook Trail marks the success of Swift’s UK tour and celebrates her creativity through costumes, songwriting and music videos, exploring the global phenomenon of the pop icon. 16 looks will sit alongside instruments played by the performer, music awards, storyboards and previously unseen archival material tracing Swift’s story from childhood to pioneering global artist.
Each of the 13 stops on the trail showcase a chapter in the songbook of Taylor Swift’s career and spotlight a particular era of her music and prolific songwriting. Costume and accessories on loan from Swift’s personal archive are on display, from customised designer cowboy boots worn during her early career as a country singer in 2007, to the jet-black late Victorian inspired ruffled shoulder dress worn in the most recent music video for her multiple-week #1 single Fortnight, from the critically acclaimed album The Tortured Poets Department (2024). Each display presents some of Swift’s most memorable looks in dialogue with its unique setting in the V&A and draws synergies between the chapters of a songbook and V&A objects on display, as well as the architecture of the building.
We are delighted to be able to display a range of celebrated looks worn by Taylor Swift at the V&A this summer. Each intimate encounter will celebrate a chapter in the artist’s musical journey. Taylor Swift’s songs like objects tell stories, often drawing from art, history and literature. We hope this specially created theatrical trail across the museum will inspire the imagination of curious visitors as they discover more about the performer, her creativity and V&A objects.
Kate Bailey, Senior Curator, Theatre & Performance
The trail takes visitors on a winding journey through the V&A’s permanent galleries and presents a variety of objects from Taylor Swift’s personal archive in dialogue with spaces and objects in the collection. It also gives visitors the opportunity to dive into the artist’s world, her storytelling and creativity, celebrating up close her ground-breaking impact on the world stage and the phenomenon of the ‘Swiftie’ fandom.
Designed by award-winning theatre designer Tom Piper and architect Alan Farlie (Ryder Architecture) – the 13 installations across the museum are theatrically staged and inspired by a chapter in the songbook bringing to life different creative moments in the performer’s musical career through set dressing, props, music video and sound. The final stop on the trail features Taylor Swift’s songs and videos in a site-specific sound experience created by award-winning sound designer Gareth Fry. The trail lighting design is by Lucy Record.
About the Display:
The Taylor Swift | Songbook Trail begins with a glimpse into the early days of the singer’s professional journey through a personal lens. Childhood transports us to the superstar’s formative years, a period in which she first began cultivating her passion for music into a talent for songwriting and performance. Photographs and media capturing key moments of Swift’s early years can be found here, putting into perspective the singer’s meteoric trajectory.
Taylor Swift’s groundbreaking self-titled album was released when she was just 16, and the next chapter in the trail documents this debut, displaying the dress and customised cowboy boots worn by Taylor Swift on the Soul2Soul II Tour in addition to the Taylor Koa guitar. This display celebrates Swift’s distinctive fusion of country sounds with contemporary pop which captured the imagination of a new generation.
In a reimagining of Shakespeare’s tragedy Romeo and Juliet, Taylor Swift’s 2008 hit Love Story introduces us to her passion for literature and storytelling. Displayed theatrically in the trail’s third chapter is the costume worn by Taylor Swift for performances of Love Story during her Fearless Tour.
As the first Taylor Swift album to be completely self-written, Speak Now is woven with personal and unapologetic reflections, musing on themes spanning her transition to adulthood. A dazzling display celebrates the art of music and showcases the lavender tulle dress designed by Reem Acra and Capezio ballet shoes worn by Taylor Swift on the Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) album back cover, alongside a ukulele played by Taylor Swift on the Speak Now World Tour.
Swift’s Red album is a dramatic shift in approach for the singer as the fearless performer experiments with rock, pop and familiar country sounds to create new musical expressions. This intimate chapter of the display features the fisherman cap worn on the Red (Taylor’s Version) album cover and the striking red Tadashi Shoji gown worn in the video for I Bet You Think About Me, a ‘From The Vault’ track on Red (Taylor’s Version).
Carving out her own space in the world of pop, Swift’s synth-pop-inspired, Grammy award-winning album 1989, confirmed her status as an icon of the genre. Exhibited in this majestic chapter are two sparkling stage costumes; an ensemble designed by Jessica Jones, a sequined catsuit designed by Zuhair Murad, and a pair of Stuart Weitzman boots worn on the 1989 tour, an era where Swift performed a catalogue of songs imbued with lyrics responding to life in the public eye and relationship dynamics.
The album reputation, described by Swift as a “goth-punk moment of female rage at being gaslit by an entire social structure” is characterised by a darker, more combative approach to songwriting and composition. The snake, a key visual motif representative of this era, features heavily in this chapter, by way of a microphone with snake detail. The Gucci boots displayed were worn by Taylor to the secret reputation listening session in London. Also on display is a dress designed by Jessica Jones coupled with a pair of Christian Louboutin boots worn by Taylor Swift on the reputation Stadium Tour.
In her defiantly celebratory album Lover, we see Taylor Swift taking a playful approach to gender stereotypes, through the lyrics and in the self-directed music video for The Man. On display are the Versace shirt, Tommy Bahama trousers, wig, and facial hair that enabled Swift’s striking metamorphosis into the ‘playboy millionaire’ character portrayed in the video. An emblem of the folklore era and the beginning of a fan tradition, the much-loved cardigan worn by Taylor Swift in the cardigan music video will be showcased in a theatrical installation responding to this moment. The surprise album folklore written by Taylor Swift in isolation, and subsequently recorded and released during the pandemic, is introspective and emotional. Its songs express feelings of longing and a desire for escapism through its dreamy compositions.
evermore was released in 2020 as a follow-up to the folklore recording sessions. Together, the “sister” albums present a departure from Swift’s autobiographical narratives with the introduction of fictional characters, and a reflective distance between her own life and the lives told through her lyrics. This installation considers how Swift’s songs paint pictures in the imagination of listeners, further illustrated by pages from the willow music video storyboards and complemented by the enchanting costume worn by Swift in the video.
The concept album Midnights, a project driven by sleepless nights, is one of sonic experimentation. With flashes of synth-pop and R&B, Midnights garnered Swift her history-making fourth Album of the Year Grammy Award. On display is the bold and ornate Oscar de la Renta ensemble worn by the superstar to announce the Midnights album at the MTV Music Video Awards 2022, in addition to the Cinderella-like costume worn in the Bejewelled music video, celebrating the round-the-clock creativity of a global megastar.
The Tortured Poets Department chapter centres around Taylor Swift’s current era and spotlights a late Victorian style inspired ensemble by UNTTLD (top) and Elena Velez (skirt) worn in the Fortnight music video. The monochromatic music video inspired by B movies, sci-fi and Victorian gothic reveals the new aesthetic expression of Swift’s latest era. Released in the midst of Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour, this album created significant setlist changes to accommodate this new era and celebrates Swift’s passion for literature and poetry.
The Records and Re-records chapter introduces visitors to the concept that is ‘Taylor’s Version’ and celebrates the pioneering achievements of the global star in regaining control over her recording masters. Reworking and re-releasing her first six albums, Swift presents fans with fresh interpretations of catalogue classics with additional tracks given new life ‘From The Vault’. Featured at this stop on the trail is the shirt dress illustrating the names of her previous albums, designed by Joseph Cassell and worn by Taylor Swift at the American Music Awards when she was named ‘Artist of the Decade’ in 2019, as well as the blue princess Oscar de la Renta gown worn by Swift to the premiere of the highest grossing concert film of all time, Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour.
Taylor Swift | Songbook Trail, 27th July 2024 – 8th September 2024, V&A South Kensington.
Taylor on Tour: A Photo Exhibition, June-September 2024, Wembley Park Outdoor Gallery
About the artist
Taylor Swift, born December 13, 1989, is an iconic American singer-songwriter renowned for her autobiographical songwriting and constant artistic reinventions. Swift has become a significant figure in popular culture and a magnet for public interest.
In 2005, Swift signed with Big Machine Records and launched her career as a country pop artist with her debut albums, “Taylor Swift” (2006) and “Fearless” (2008). Hits like “Teardrops on My Guitar,” “Love Story,” and “You Belong with Me” dominated both country and pop charts. She ventured into rock with “Speak Now” (2010) and electronic sounds on “Red” (2012). Her 2014 album “1989” marked a shift to synth-pop, producing chart-toppers “Shake It Off,” “Blank Space,” and “Bad Blood.” “Reputation” (2017), infused with hip-hop influences, featured hits like “Look What You Made Me Do.”
Switching to Republic Records in 2018, Swift released the electropop album “Lover” (2019) and the documentary “Miss Americana” (2020). In 2020, she explored indie folk with “Folklore” and “Evermore,” followed by the subdued pop of “Midnights” (2022) and “The Tortured Poets Department” (2024). Amidst an ownership dispute, she re-recorded four albums under “(Taylor’s Version),” including tracks like “Cardigan” and “All Too Well.” The Eras Tour (2023–present) became the highest-grossing tour of all time, and Swift’s concert film set records, solidifying her as the first billionaire whose wealth primarily comes from music.
Swift ranks among the world’s best-selling music artists, with over 200 million records sold globally. Seven of her albums debuted with over one million pure sales in a week. Named Time’s 2023 Person of the Year, she consistently appears in top artist lists by Rolling Stone, Billboard, and Forbes. Her accolades include 14 Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, 40 American Music Awards, 39 Billboard Music Awards, and 23 MTV Video Music Awards. Notably, she has won Album of the Year at the Grammys, Video of the Year at the VMAs, and IFPI Global Recording Artist of the Year four times each.
