Between her junior and senior year at the University of Maryland, Kidwell worked as an intern in the Division of Textiles at the Museum of History and Technology[1] in 1961.
After completing her undergraduate and graduate studies, Kidwell returned to the Smithsonian as assistant curator in the Section of Costume[2] in 1964.
She advanced to curator after three years,[3] serving as liaison to her predecessor, Anne Wood Murray, where her primary research focused on 18th- and 19th-century women's clothing.
The exhibit opened in 1974 and received positive reviews in its thematic interpretation of clothing and fashion appearance's influence on cultural identity, a new strategy in the Section of Costume.
Kidwell proposed an independent Division of Costume in a memorandum addressed to then assistant director, Silvio Bedini: "Clothes made the man," observed Mark Twain.
[13] Kidwell's main priority in her research was to "talk about behavior" as opposed to solely clothes, denoting an emphasis on the influence of fashion on not only gender roles but consequently identity and culture.