As a student in the 1960s, Zandra Rhodes would often visit the costume court of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London to study the Elizabethan doublets. She went on to incorporate elements of Tudor costume into many of her couture collections.

Now things have come full circle. As an icon of British fashion – and a dame – Rhodes’ collections are providing inspiration for a new generation of students. Upon receiving her honorary doctorate of the arts from De Montfort University (DMU) in 2023, Rhodes announced her decision to donate her archive to the university.

These remarkable archives are at the heart of a major new public exhibition across the DMU campus. The University Gallery will explore Rhodes’ creative process and design collaborations with brands such as Ikea, Marks & Spencers and TopShop.

The University Museum will also present an in-depth study of her autumn/winter 1983 Medieval Collection. Together, these displays draw on material from the Zandra Rhodes Foundation’s donation to reveal both the breadth of the designer’s career and the rich educational potential of her archive.

Rhodes originally studied printed textile design at the Royal College of Art in London. After graduating in 1964, she became frustrated with clothing manufacturers who considered her textile patterns too outlandish to use on their garments, so she decided to move into fashion design.

Rhodes ensured that each garment she designed would perfectly showcase her own textile prints. Her trademark diaphanous dresses have been........

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