THIS London Fashion Week, Barbour is presenting Tartan Reimagined: The Barbour Way, an immersive exhibition taking over the ground floor of the Saatchi Gallery.
Open to the public from 18 to 19 September 2026, the exhibition celebrates the British heritage brand’s famous family tartan, tracing its journey from the Barbour family’s origins in south-west Scotland to its place in the brand’s AW26 collection.
Barbour AW26
Across a series of immersive spaces, the exhibition looks at how a design code so closely associated with Barbour has continued to evolve. Alongside pieces from AW26, visitors can discover the winning designs from Barbour’s Tartan Reimagined competition with the British Fashion Council, which invited emerging designers to reinterpret the house’s original sett through their own lens.
Craftsmanship also plays a central role as the final galleries turn their attention to Barbour Re-Loved, the initiative that’s dedicated to extending the life of the brand’s waxed jackets through repair, restoration and reworking. One-of-a-kind creations made with Gucci, Erdem, Paul Smith, Glastonbury x Oxfam and Aardman will be displayed alongside a working recreation of Barbour’s South Shields factory, with craftspeople demonstrating the techniques behind repairing, rewaxing and remaking its outerwear.
Barbour AW26
The exhibition arrives against the backdrop of Barbour’s recently launched campaign starring Sienna Miller and Idris Elba. Shot against the rolling landscape of Scotland’s Pentland Hills, the campaign follows the pair on a characteristically British countryside adventure after a mix-up involving two identically named pubs sends them in different directions. Naturally, tartan features heavily, including the new Shadow Tartan, a muted interpretation of Barbour’s classic family sett.
Together, the campaign and London exhibition offer a contemporary take on one of Barbour’s most recognisable signatures, while respecting the craftsmanship and British countryside that’s synonymous with the brand.
by Felicity Carter
Tartan Reimagined: The Barbour Way is open at Saatchi Gallery from 18-19 September, 2026