EXCLUSIVE: Jason Wu Partnering With Robert Rauschenberg Foundation for Spring 2026

Jason Wu is partnering with the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation for spring 2026.

The designer’s upcoming collection “Collage” draws inspiration from 10 of Rauschenberg’s “Hoarfrosts” series and “Airport Suite” works from the ’70s, which were rooted in the artist’s experimental use of textiles. Rauschenberg’s creative renderings of fabric have informed various silhouettes and textures in Wu’s new collection, which will be unveiled during his runway show on Sept. 14 in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The show’s set will be centered around a major Rauschenberg work on loan from the foundation.

“This collection, themed ‘Collage,’ is my tribute to Mr. Rauschenberg’s work and my personal journey as an immigrant who collects what seem disparate references into my creations. In that sense, there is a very direct link to the legacy and mythology of Robert Rauschenberg,” Jason Wu said in a statement announcing the collaboration.

Rauschenberg is the focus of several upcoming museum shows in honor of the artist’s centennial year. A few days after Wu’s runway show, the Menil Collection in Houston will unveil “Robert Rauschenberg: Fabric Works of the 1970s,” the first museum survey dedicated to the artist’s usage of fabric during that time period. In New York, the Museum of the City of New York is getting ready to unveil “Robert Rauschenberg’s New York: Pictures from the Real World,” a major exhibition dedicated to the artist’s relationship with the city, and on Oct. 10 the Guggenheim will show over a dozen works, including the large scale “Barge” painting, as part of its “Robert Rauschenberg: Life Can’t Be Stopped” exhibition.

Last September, Wu collaborated with Taiwanese calligrapher Tong Yang-Tze for his spring 2025 collection. The designer has also previously collaborated with artists Kaws and Isamu Noguchi.