One of Antwerp's best-loved museums will launch an exhibition from next week to celebrate the people who put Belgium on the fashion map – and it's only an hour's train ride away from Brussels.
The Fashion Museum of Antwerp (MoMu) will launch a long-anticipated exhibition on 28 March, showcasing the legacy of the renowned Antwerp Six: Dries Van Noten, Ann Demeulemeester, Dirk Van Saene, Walter Van Beirendonck, Dirk Bikkembergs, and Marina Yee.
Their journey began in 1986, when the six graduates of the Fashion Department at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp travelled to London to present their collections at the British Designer Show.
Following the show, the international press nicknamed the group the 'Antwerp Six' – supposedly because their Belgian names were too difficult to pronounce. Today, the Antwerp Six have become a powerful brand, even though they never intended to be, MoMu noted.
The Antwerp Six. Left to right: Ann Demeulemeester, Dirk Van Saene, Marina Yee, Dries Van Noten, Walter Van Beirendonck and Dirk Bikkembergs. Credit: Philippe Costes for WWD / MoMu
Each of them has built highly influential world-renowned careers in fashion, forming several generations of designers in Belgium and beyond. MoMu reviews each of their paths from their time at the Academy, looking at their first professional steps in the 1970s and 1980s and their solo careers to the present day.
The Antwerp Six today
Since launching their careers 40 years ago in London, each of the Antwerp Six designers has had a unique and somewhat thorny path building their careers in fashion.
Working in different dimensions, each has brought a distinctive perspective to the industry, yet few of them have remained in it in a conventional sense.
Today, the brands of Ann Demeulemeester and Dries Van Noten continue spinning the thread even after their founders have retired. Both have sold their companies.
Demeulemeester, known for her intricate dark romantic designs and flowing silhouettes, found her success in the 1990s and 2000s with the artistic society and music scene, including her close friend and muse, Patti Smith.
She left her company in 2013, but had a brief return in 2021. Demeulemeester is currently designing homeware with the Belgian brand Serax, and contributes to the merchandise at the flagship Ann Demeulemeester store in Antwerp. Stefano Gallici now leads her brand.
Ann Demeulemeester summer 1988 lookbook. Credit: Patrick Robyn / MoMu
Having built arguably the most successful house, Dries Van Noten retired in June 2024. He left his Creative Director role to Julian Klausner, who has been working there since 2018 and upholds and reimagines the fearless colour and pattern combinations for which Van Noten was known.
Dirk Bikkembergs found success building a highly lucrative global brand that pioneered the fusion of high fashion and athletic wear, but has stepped away from the industry, selling his label in 2011 to an Italian company.
Walter Van Beirendonck remains the last of the Antwerp Six to continue his independent fashion label and regularly show his playful, subversive collections at Fashion Week in Paris. He has also taught at the Antwerp Academy for decades and served as the Head of the Fashion Department until stepping down in 2022. However, Van Beirendonck has not retired from teaching, taking a mentorship role at Polimoda in Italy.
Dirk Van Saene also remains connected to the Academy, working as a professor. He took the least commercial path and kept his work on a small scale, fully independent from fashion cycles.
Credit: MoMu
For Marina Yee, teaching has also been her primary focus, as she stepped back from the mainstream commercial fashion system early on. She taught at several institutions, including the Royal Academy of Art (KABK) in The Hague and KASK in Ghent, passing down her philosophy of upcycling and sustainability onto a new generation of fashion talent.
She relaunched her design career in 2018, working on collections with Japanese partners for the Asian market. In 2021, Yee returned to Paris with her label M.Y. and continued working until she died in November 2025.
Continuous legacy
All six designers have worked closely with MoMu for the upcoming exhibition to celebrate their 40th anniversary.
"The Antwerp Six helped shape recent fashion history. We are immensely proud that we can bring the work of these six iconic designers together for a unique, in-depth view of their legacy and their influence," MoMu Director Kaat Debo said in a press statement.
The exhibition opens on 28 March and will run until 17 January 2027. MoMu is organising a wide-ranging public programme, including openings and performances, workshops and youth projects. Find more information here.
