Effortless chic forms the subject of the Victoria & Albert Museum’s exhibition “The Glamour of Italian Fashion 1945-2014,” opening in London on April 5.

"The Italians have a kind of ease in their own skin, which is very glamorous," explains Sonnet Stanfill, the exhibition’s curator. “A great example is Italian tailoring and the unstructured jacket, compared to Savile Row, where the suit jacket is like armor. It’s not about heavy corsetry or great skirts and large jewels, and we’re certainly highlighting that in this exhibition.”

Divided into five sections, the exhibition will trace Italy’s various contributions to fashion from the end of World War II to the present, and its role as a global manufacturing powerhouse. It will also explore its influence on the silver screen, both in Cinecittà and Hollywood, and its stars—Audrey Hepburnand Elizabeth Taylor were both renowned ambassadors for Italian fashion.

According to Stanfill, the “secret weapon of Italian fashion is the strength of its so-called productive districts, which allowed designers like Gianni Versace to take advantage of things like printed silk in Como; Salvatore Ferragamo of traditional Tuscan leathercraft; and Ermenegildo Zegna of very high-quality wool in Biella. It’s interesting to track the story arc from the postwar couture moment to the late 60s to early 70s when Italy became the center for ready-to-wear production. Italian fashion business is the thing that evolved the most.”

About 100 ensembles and accessories by leading Italian fashion houses including Dolce & Gabbana, Giorgio Armani, Gianfranco Ferré, Gucci, Missoni, Prada, Fausto Puglisi, and Giambattista Valli, will be on display.

Highlights include a 2013 couture confection from the house of Valentino, designed by its current creative directors Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli; an evening dress and matelassé coat by Mila Schon, 1966, that Lee Radziwill once wore to one of Truman Capote’s famous Black and White balls; and a wool-and-leather suit by Gianni Versace, 1985, that for Stanfill represents “the full picture of the moment when he was really in his prime as a designer.”

The spotlight will also shine on a range of handbags, gloves, and shoes, including an ornate pair of Dolce & Gabbana stiletto ankle boots that feature gold, white, and pink embroidery with crystals and sequins on black leather.

Sponsored by Italian jeweler Bulgari, the exhibition will showcase the brand’s rarely-seen platinum, diamond, and emerald necklace that Elizabeth Taylor wore first at her wedding to Richard Burton, and again to a masked ball in Hotel Ca’ Rezzonico, Venice in 1967.

“The Glamour of Italian Fashion 1945-2014” runs at the Victoria & Albert Museum from April 5 to July 27.