Kontakt
Mag. Sarah Aistleitner
T +43 1 525 24 4025
sarah.aistleitner@khm.at
Tanja Stigler
T +43 1 525 24 4019
tanja.stigler@khm.at
Who’s Wearing the Pants?
25 March 2025 to 1 February 2026
In its major special exhibition 2025, the Weltmuseum Wien takes a journey through 3,000 years of trouser history from around the world and uses this symbolic item of clothing to pose the question: ‘Who wears the trousers?’
The large annual exhibition shows treasures and many a bizarre find from the collections of the Weltmuseum Wien, the Kunsthistorisches Museum and the Theatermuseum as well as loans from Austrian museums and international collections. In the show, historical objects enter into dialogue with contemporary art.
Information
Downloads
Downloads
Press release
Presse release "Who's Wearing the Pants?" (pdf, 1 MB)
Exhibition tour (pdf, 174 KB)
Press photos
Maker unknown
Nigeria, c.1980
Jacquard fabric made of cotton, synthetic fibres, and lurex with machine stitching
Weltmuseum Wien, Barbara Plankensteiner Collection
© KHM-Museumsverband
Maker unknown
Baghdad, Iraq, before 1886
Cowhide and sheepskin, cotton fabric with quilted seams and animal hair padding, metal buckle
Weltmuseum Wien, Josef Troll Collection
© KHM-Museumsverband
Maker unknown
Haiti, before 1947
Cotton twill with leg buttons and machine stitching
Weltmuseum Wien, Kurt Fisher Collection
© KHM-Museumsverband
Maker unknown
Chichicastenango, Guatemala, before 1962
Napped wool fabric with embroidery and hand stitching
Weltmuseum Wien, Etta Becker-Donner Collection
© KHM-Museumsverband
Maker unknown
Todos Santos, Huehuetenango, Guatemala, 1967
Cotton fabric with hand stitching
Weltmuseum Wien, Etta Becker-Donner Collection
© KHM-Museumsverband
Maker unknown
Pakistan, before 1980
Lancé brocade fabric made of silk and metallic thread with machine stitching and hand-stitched hems
Weltmuseum Wien, Mohammed Asad Zia Collection
© KHM-Museumsverband
Maker unknown
India, mid-20th century
Silk ikat with machine stitching, metal hooks and snap buttons
Weltmuseum Wien, Collector unknown
© KHM-Museumsverband
Maker unknown
Ibadan, Nigeria, 1970s
Cotton fabric with industrial eyelet embroidery and machine stitching
Weltmuseum Wien, Barbara Plankensteiner Collection
© KHM-Museumsverband
Maker unknown
Southwest Nigeria, late 1970s
Narrow strip cotton and lurex fabric with embroidery and machine stitching
Weltmuseum Wien, Barbara Plankensteiner Collection
© KHM-Museumsverband
Maker unknown
Western Arctic North America, 1950s
Polar bear and seal fur with leather edging, plastic buttons, and hand stitching
Weltmuseum Wien, Collector unknown
© KHM-Museumsverband
Karl-Uwe Heußner (spinner), Ulrike Beck (reconstruction of the design), Moa Hallgren (weaver)
Berlin, Germany, 2003–2017
Wool twill with kilim and tāniko techniques
German Archaeological Institute, Berlin
© Photo: Jan Kersten/DAI-EA
Ian Berry
U.K., 2014
Assemblage of denim fragments
AWWG Collection, Pepe Jeans®, Madrid
Courtesy of Pepe Jeans®
© Bildrecht, Wien 2025
Laura Eckert
Germany, 2017
Oak parquet, gesso, paint
Wageningen, Het Depot, Beeldengalerij
© Bildrecht, Vienna 2025 – photo: Tom Dachs
Julius Gertinger
Vienna, 10 April 1874
Reproduction of a photographic print on card
Vienna, Theatermuseum
© KHM-Museumsverband
Christoph Gandtner
Innsbruck, Austria,
end of the 16th century (after 1585)
Clay, tin glaze
Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Kunstkammer
© KHM-Museumsverband
Joseph Kowarz
Mexico, 1864–1867
Goatskin, gold and silver embroidery on leather, silver buckle, gold-plated decorative buttons
Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Department of Court Uniforms
© KHM-Museumsverband
Tassilo Adam
Java, Indonesia, 1921–26
Reproduction of 3 autochromes
Weltmuseum Wien, Photo Collection, donated by
Tassilo Adam
© KHM-Museumsverband
Jingdezhen porcelain manufactory, China
People’s Republic of China, 1973
Porcelain
Weltmuseum Wien, Helmut Opletal Collection
© KHM-Museumsverband
Maker unknown
Bactria or Kapisa, Central Asia,
127–151 CE or 227–251 CE
Gold
Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Coin Cabinet
© KHM-Museumsverband
Wolfgang Großschedel (armourer);
Ambrosius Gemlich (etcher)
Landshut, Germany, 1535/40
Iron, forged, chased, partly etched; etched decoration: partly fire-gilt, partly etched black; leather; brass
Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Imperial Armoury
© KHM-Museumsverband
Please note
! The pictures provided must not be manipulated, cropped or used for any other purposes. Our press photographs may be published only with complete reference to each picture, including a copyright notice.