Brilliant by Design: The Handbags of Judith Leiber

Brilliant by Design: The Handbags of Judith Leiber opens at the Mint Museum Randolph on October 24, and it's going to be on view through July 3, 2027. It brings together more than 100 of Leiber's handbags and accessories, shown alongside fashions from the Mint's own collection. If you've never heard the name, you've almost certainly seen the work: those small, hard-sided evening bags covered in Swarovski crystals, shaped like everything from fantastical animals to architectural landmarks. They're called minaudières, and Leiber basically made them her signature.

There's a hell of a story behind the work, too. Judith Leiber was born Judith Petö in Budapest in 1921. She grew up in a Europe increasingly shaped by antisemitism and had planned to study chemistry in London, but World War II broke out and forced her into the handbag guild—one of the few professional paths open to Jews in Hungary at the time. She started as the only female apprentice and worked her way up to master craftswoman, first in leather and later pioneering the metal minaudière. A Holocaust survivor, she eventually moved to the U.S. and became one of America's most inventive luxury designers.

The exhibition gathers over 100 of her sculptural, whimsical pieces, from rare shell-constructed purses to designs inspired by Tiffany mosaic ceilings. Seeing them alongside the Mint's own fashion collection puts them in context—these aren't just objects to look at; they were meant to be carried. The show runs for quite a while, so you've got plenty of time to catch it.

Admission is $15 for adults and $10 for college students with ID, seniors 65 and older, and teachers. It's free for members, youths 18 and younger, and college art students. The show opens October 24 at the Mint Museum Randolph in Charlotte.