Kate hails power of past objects to inspire future as her new exhibition opens

The Princess of Wales has highlighted the power of “historic objects” to influence “fashion, design, film, art” as a new exhibition she curated opens.

Kate said “unique” items can help people explore the “role we play in the wider tapestry of life” as the collection she chose went on display at the new V&A East Storehouse.

She highlighted an eclectic mix of items from the V&A, including a watercolour painting of a forest glade by children’s author Beatrix Potter, a medieval Somerset church tile and a Welsh quilt handmade almost 200 years ago.

In a message written by Kate, displayed with her Makers and Creators exhibition, she says: “Objects can tell a story. A collection of objects can create a narrative, both about our past and as inspiration for the future.

“This display celebrates our past makers and creators and illustrates how much historic objects can influence fashion, design, film, art and creativity today.

“Individual, unique objects can come together to create a collective whole that helps us to explore our social and cultural experiences and the role we play in the wider tapestry of life.”

Other items include a costume by Oliver Messel, one of Britain’s foremost stage designers, for the Fairy of the Woodland Glade worn by Diana Vere in the Royal Ballet’s 1960 production of The Sleeping Beauty.

A Victorian Morris & Co furnishing screen designed by William Morris’s assistant John Henry Dearle and a George Henry Boughton oil painting called A Woman Holding a Mirror and a Rose also feature.

The mini-exhibition also boasts a Chinese blue and white Qing dynasty porcelain vase from the mid 17th to early 18th century, a sculpture by Clemence Dane of her hands and a childhood photograph album belonging to Beatrix Potter’s father Rupert Potter.

The princess is the V&A’s patron and she chose the items in June when she visited its East Storehouse in Stratford, east London, to learn about the depository’s “order an object” system where paintings, furniture, books and sculptures can be requested by the public for personal viewing.

Kate’s Makers and Creators exhibition is one of more than 100 changing mini displays set up at the ends of storage racking in the storehouse.

More than 500,000 creative works – from individual items to whole collections like the Glastonbury festival archive – are stored at the site, the majority of the V&A’s collection.

Published: 30/07/2025 by Radio NewsHub