Every year, one of the most exclusive, prestigious, and iconic events in today’s society is held in Darien’s backyard at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. What is it you may ask? But, the infamous Met Gala. This event was though up in 1948 by Eleanor Lambert, who helped start New York Fashion Week, as a way to raise money for the Costume Institute. When Vogue got involved with the event in the 1970s, the Met Gala transitioned to having a themed dress code each year. Today, the event is known for its renowned guests from all different aspects of society: actors, singers, athletes, politicians, and businessman. Viewers watch excitedly seeing who will show up, with past guests being Princess Diana, Kardashian-Jenner Family, Andy Warhol, Madonna, Gigi Hadid, Tom Brady, Hillary Clinton, and more. The Met is a culmination of wild fashion choices, surprise performances, and beautiful decor all thought up by longtime editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour.
This year’s theme is costume art coined by the phrase: “Fashion Is Art.” This goes along with unveiling of The Met’s spring exhibition Costume Art, a 12,000-square-foot Condé M. Nast Galleries. This year’s co-chairs were Beyoncé, Nichole Kidman, Venus Williams, and of course, Anna Wintour. To here more details about this year’s event and the newest art exhibition, read The Met’s rundown here.
Now let’s get into the celebrities’ looks that were shown off on the red carpet on the first Monday of this month. Critics marveled at the fashion choices of Hailey Beiber, Doechii, Law Roach, Emma Chamberlain, and A$AP Rocky, and were disappointed at the lack of effort or attention to theme from Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez.
The rising actor brought into the limelight by HBO’s Heated Rivalry, Hudson Williams, experimented with different shades of blue, eye makeup, and custom vintage Balenciaga for his first Met Gala attendance. The Hollywood Reported coined his look as a “jaw-dropping ensemble,” praising his ability to fully commit to his attire, unlike most male attendees. His look was inspired by the movie Black Swan and included black detailing to an open pale blue suit with a black train. Online, fans loved how Williams was unafraid to experiment with feminity, and were pleased with this exciting, unique look.
Another red carpet moment people are talking about is Sarah Paulson’s return to the Met Gala wearing a grey, fluffy dress completed with a dollar bill covering her eyes, which the designer Matières Fécales called “The One Percent.” Fécales described the piece as a part of a collection that “was a reflection of the greed and corruption that comes with extreme power.” This statement provoked praise from some and hypocrisy from others, as the Met Gala is quite the grand event, with the cost of attendance being one hundred thousand dollars. Her look adds to the controversy over tech billionaires “buying their way” into the Met Gala this year, degrading the exclusivity that surrounded the event. For more on this discussion, read Variety’s take.
Lastly, let’s look into Sabrina Carpenter’s look of the night, which is my personal favorite. Dressed by Dior’s Jonathan Anderson, Carpenter’s look paid homage to Audrey Hepburn’s film Sabrina. Her dress was made up of rhinestoned film strips, complete with a ravishing headpiece with diamonds draping over her hair. She changed into two other looks throughout the night, one of which was a Versace tribute dress. Carpenter was also the surprise performer of the night, even singing “Landslide” with Stevie Nicks at the end of the night.
