The New York Historical, New York’s first museum, has today announced “We All Dress for Bill”—the new exhibition celebrating famed photographer Bill Cunningham’s decades-long career—will open in the winter of 2027. On view in the Klingenstein Family Gallery, the signature exhibition space in The Historical’s new Tang Wing for American Democracy, the exhibition will feature Cunningham’s photographs capturing street fashion, fashion shows, and parties across New York City. Raul Martinez, Global Creative Director of Vogue, will guest curate, and Anna Wintour, Condé Nast's Chief Content Officer, will support the exhibition in an advisory capacity, along with creative director Alex Gonzalez. The title of the exhibition, “We All Dress for Bill,” is inspired by Ms. Wintour’s famous comment.
Cunningham was a frequent photographer and visitor at The Historical, and the Museum hosted his 85th birthday party accompanying an exhibition of his photography—after which he left on his bicycle to photograph that evening’s events around town. The Historical acquired his extensive archive in 2025.
“While modestly traveling New York by day and night on his bicycle, Bill Cunningham’s contributions were legendary,” says Dr. Louise Mirrer, President and CEO of The New York Historical. “He documented the fashion moments of our times, he shined a light on the celebrations of New York’s cultural institutions, and along the way he built an archive of stunning photographs. And there’s no more important and appropriate partner for this exhibition than Raul and Anna. We’re also grateful to New York Historical Trustee Sally Klingenstein Martell for her generous support of the archive.”
“Photography, fashion, and New York are my greatest passions, so the opportunity to curate this one-of-a-kind collection is a great gift,” said Mr. Martinez. “During our first conversations about the exhibition, my colleague Anna Wintour shared, ‘Well, we always used to say ‘we all dress for Bill,’ so that’s the most natural title for the exhibition.’ I heartily agree.” Martinez has been the global creative director of Vogue since 2024, and his work with photography was honored with a National Magazine Award.
The exhibition will be co-curated by Martinez and The New York Historical’s Valerie Paley, Senior Vice President and Sue Ann Weinberg Director of the Patricia D. Klingenstein Library.
Known for riding around the streets of New York City on his bicycle wearing his iconic blue French worker’s jacket, Bill Cunningham was one of the most influential style authorities and trend-spotters of the 20th century. Often covering multiple fashion shows and high-profile gatherings in the course of one day, Cunningham was equally renowned for his work capturing fashionable New Yorkers in his candid street photography.
Born in 1929 and raised in Boston, Cunningham moved to New York in 1948, initially working in advertising before turning his attention to millinery and making hats under the name “William J.” After serving in the US Army, he returned to New York and began a career in journalism, writing for the Chicago Tribune and Women’s Wear Daily, while also taking photographs of fashion on the streets of New York. The New York Times first published a group of his impromptu pictures in December 1978, which soon became a regular series and continued for the rest of his career. Cunningham passed away in 2016.
The Sally Klingenstein Martell "Bill Cunningham Archive" at The New York Historical consists of approximately 600 linear feet of items, the majority of which are photographs spanning from the late 1960s to the 2010s. The subjects range from on-the-street fashion, parties, weddings, benefits, and galas, including three decades of the Met Gala. Additionally, the archive documents his millinery efforts, through receipts, textile swatches, scrapbooks, and news clips and includes notebooks from his visits to Paris in the 1960s.
The New York Historical’s collection includes the bicycle that Cunningham rode; his camera; his signature blue jacket; and scrapbooks from his millinery line. The collection also includes selections from Facades, Cunninghan’s eight-year photographic project documenting New York City’s architectural and fashion history, featuring portraits mainly of fellow photographer Editta Sherman, dressed in period costume and posed in front of buildings from the same era. In 2014, The New York Historical hosted an exhibition showcasing photographs from Facades.
