The met gala is an annual fundraiser held for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in New York City. Every year, attendees are given a new creative theme and are implored to dress fashionably and more so, artistically in accordance with it.
This year’s theme was ‘Gilded Glamour’. Referencing America’s Gilded age roughly between 1870-1900 when the country registered massive economic growth and technological advancements. Glamour would refer to the elites of society and the theme would mimic how they would dress. Nonetheless, the theme left plenty room for creativity.
Here’s a rundown of some of the best looks from the met gala and the inspiration behind them.
Blake Lively and Alicia Keys
Both Blake Lively and Alicia Keys chose to pay homage to the city that paved the way for the beginning of the gilded age in America – New York and did this by honoring its architecture in particular. Blake Lively’s dress, designed by Atelier Versace, was made to reflect historical landmarks such as the Empire State Building and Grand Central Station. The most interesting part of her outfit was her Tiara by Lorraine Schwartz which was oxidized to signify the oxidization of the Statue of Liberty.
On the other hand, Alicia Keys took a more contemporary approach to the same theme. Her stunning gown, designed by Ralph Lauren had a train that featured the New York city skyline. This is iconic because the singer sang the song “New York” and she wanted her look to represent the “Empire state of mind”.
Rosalia
Some of our favorite looks from this red carpet were where past met present. Rosalia embodied that concept the best with this custom made ensemble by Mathew Williams at Givenchy. The inspiration behind this dress was the paintings of John Singer Sargent, who is considered one of the leading painters of the gilded time. The dress was inspired by an array of his portraits. No stone was left untouched when it came to the making of this dress. The attention to detail is remarkable. Rosalia’s personality was added to the outfit with a pair of sunglasses that also did marvelously at modernizing the look.
Questlove
Also known as Ahmir Khalib Thompson, was dressed in an oversized black jacket, paired with matching pants and a white button-up shirt. The oversized jacket was a tribute to the late André Leon Talley who was a stylist, fashion journalist and editor at Vogue whose signature look was an oversized jacket. His outfit was designed by Greg Lauren and Gee’s Bend quilters who are African American women. It is said that residents of Gee’s Bend have been making quilts since the 1800s. Questlove told Vogue, “For African Americans in this country, the Gilded period is a little bit different for our story, so I wanted to highlight Black women who’ve sacrificed for the country.” He did that very well and simply.
Kim Kardashian
Kim Kardashian managed to acquire an iconic piece by Jean Louis worn by Marilyn Monroe 60 years ago in an iconic moment when she sang “Happy Birthday” to former U.S. president, John F. Kennedy. She had to lose about sixteen pounds to fit in the dress and still did not manage to zip it up. This also sparked off controversy in the fashion world because designers felt as though this signified the improper treatment of historic costume. People in the fashion industry are now concerned that this will set off normalization of wearing historic costume and this robs the importance of the historic designs. Marilyn Monroe was actually sewed into this dress ahead of her performance in 1962, just a few months before she died. We understand fully why Kim Kardashian’s appearance in this piece felt like a slap in the face to the history and culture that the dress signified.
Paloma Elesser and Billie Eilish
Model, Paloma Elesser and Musician, Billie Eilish, both highlighted the fashion from the 1900’s that was less glitzy than the century that came after. They did this with their use of structured corsets, gloves and hair and makeup. Paloma who wore coach, sought to outline the structure of gilded fashion in the 1800s with a corset, lace skirt and garter and personalized it by wearing the courtside outside as opposed to in. Billie Eilish, wearing Gucci, had the same inspiration but different execution. Her dress was also made of recycled materials making it sustainable.
