The Taylor Swift Exhibit At London's V&A Museum Is Full Of Easter Eggs
The “Songbook Trail” honors her legacy with iconic ‘fits she’s worn throughout her career.
It’s Taylor Swift’s European summer, and we’re all just lucky to be living in it. As the superstar continues her Eras Tour across the U.K. and the rest of Europe, cities are going all out to celebrate her arrival — from TTPD-branded trams in Edinburgh to “Taylor Town” art installations in Liverpool.
In London, the Victoria & Albert Museum is honoring Swift with a new exhibit called the Taylor Swift “Songbook Trail,” open Saturday, July 27 (just in time for the Eras Tour’s second London run in August).
It’s perfectly designed for Swifties who love sleuthing for Easter eggs.
The V&A, which opened in 1852, is one of London’s largest and most well-known art museums, housing over two million objects spanning 5,000 years of history. This exhibit brings in 13 more curated displays to honor Swift and her creative process, including iconic outfits she’s worn in music videos and on red carpets throughout her career.
It’s free for visitors — museum entry is also free, BTW — and rather than being set in one dedicated area, it takes you on a guided trail throughout the galleries to find where the items are located. (In other words, it’s perfectly designed for Swifties who love sleuthing for Easter eggs.)
I got the chance to preview the exhibit before it opened to the public, and I can confirm it’s a must-see for any longtime fans. Here’s what to expect if you stop by:
Chapter 1: Lover
The first display case you’ll be directed to on the trail map (which the museum provides visitors upon entry) represents Lover — specifically “The Man” music video. V&A senior curator Kate Bailey explained during the press preview that every item on this trail is intentionally placed in the museum to be in conversation with the permanent pieces around it.
In this case, Swift’s outfit from the music video is flanked by statues of Venus and Diana, and it sits in front of a wall of portraits of historic white male artists — proving Swift is really “the man” in the modern era.
Chapter 2: Reputation
Next up is the Reputation display case, containing an outfit Swift wore during the Reputation Stadium Tour in 2018. It also includes the snake-printed boots she wore for the Reputation secret session in London.
It’s placed in the room that typically houses the three graces — a trio of goddess muses in Greek mythology, meant to remind the viewer of Swift’s era of transformation and rebirth.
P.S. Notice the “invisible string” lights woven throughout each of these displays.
Chapter 3: Speak Now
Swift’s 2010 album Speak Now was her first entirely self-written musical project, and it’s honored in the Norfolk Music Room of the museum.
The intricately decorated space includes visual nods to literature, music, and magic (songs from the album are playing in this room), and the display case includes the dress Swift wore on the back cover of Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) and a ukulele she used during the Speak Now World Tour in 2011.
Chapter 4: Red
The super-luxe Red display includes the dress Swift wore in the “I Bet You Think About Me” music video, facing the newsboy cap she wore on the Red (Taylor’s Version) front cover.
They’re placed in front of the state bed from Melville House, a romantic, lavish piece of luxury furniture from the 1700s — which, BTW, has never had its museum case opened until now.
Chapter 5: Fearless
Swift’s elaborate “Love Story” dress from the Fearless Tour sits perfectly perched on a balcony in the Raphael gallery, with a copy of Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet open in front of it.
This is considered the most prestigious space in the museum, housing floor-to-ceiling Renaissance paintings by legendary artists like Raphael.
Chapter 6: 1989
Also in the Raphael gallery is the 1989 display, consisting of two of Swift’s outfits from the 1989 World Tour. This 2015 album marked the superstar’s official crossover into pop music and her second AOTY Grammy win.
It cemented her as a true renaissance artist who could cross genres, which is why the museum chose to honor it in the room with Raphael’s works (he’s considered a Renaissance master himself).
Chapter 7: Taylor Swift Debut
The display case for Swift’s debut album sits in the fashion gallery in front of a large al fresco painting evoking Swift’s country music roots. It includes a blue dress and cowboy boots she wore during a 2007 concert, along with her guitar from the time.
Chapter 8: Evermore
In true Evermore fashion, the vibe of this stop evokes whimsy and imagination. It features the dress Swift wore in the “Willow” music video, along with storyboard images that her team used to map out the video shoot.
The display case sits in the Victorian paintings gallery, a room full of elaborate fictional storytelling similar to the kind Swift does in her ninth album.
Chapter 9: Folklore
Folklore is housed in another room full of paintings, this time landscapes that evoke the Irish countryside feel of Swift’s 2020 album.
Her cardigan — yes, *the* iconic cardigan — sits in a case in front of a replica of her “Cardigan” music video piano, while birdsong plays along with songs from the album.
Chapter 10: Taylor’s Version Re-Records
The next stop on the trail takes visitors to a room that’s not typically open to the public. The Prince Consort Gallery is a textile vault, the perfect metaphor for “the vault” where Swift kept songs that didn’t make the cut for her albums, but were eventually released with her re-records.
This room (my personal favorite) includes a treasure trove of Swift’s famous outfits, including her 2022 VMAs minidress and the blue Oscar de la Renta gown she wore to the Los Angeles premiere of her Eras Tour concert film in 2023.
Chapter 11: Midnights
Also in the textile room is the display case celebrating Midnights, featuring the yellow dress Swift wore in the “Bejeweled” music video.
The singer’s tenth studio album featured “the stories of 13 sleepless nights scattered throughout [her] life,” so the museum included it in the same room with her re-records to represent old stories brought to light.
Chapter 12: The Tortured Poets Department
Fans of Swift’s current “female rage” era will love seeing her “Fortnight” music video dress placed near the museum’s National Art Library, full of the works of other tortured poets throughout history.
The dress is stacked on top of poetry books, with pages of manuscripts “flying” in the air around the display case.
Chapter 13: Childhood
The trail concludes with a sweet nod to Swift’s childhood, where she honed the creativity that eventually made her a global superstar. Old family videos and performance clips play on loop in the Medieval & Renaissance Galleries, denoting how history can lead us to the present. It’s a sweet “You’re On Your Own, Kid”-coded nod to her beginnings.
The Taylor Swift “Songbook Trail” is open at the Victoria & Albert Museum’s South Kensington location, from now until Sept. 8.
