The 2019 Met Gala is in less than a month! If you aren’t well-informed, the Costume Institute Gala (as it’s formally known) is an annual fundraising gala for the benefit of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in New York City. It marks the opening of the Costume Institute’s annual fashion exhibit.
Founded by publicist Eleanor Lambert, the annual benefit was first held in 1948 to encourage donations from New York’s high society. Nowadays, it’s the hottest ticket in town with everyone from Blake Lively to Lady Gaga clamouring to be invited.
Following the success of the 2018 Met Gala exhibition – ‘Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination‘ – the New York Museum is ready to dust off the red carpet ahead of its next show on Monday, May 6.
This year’s Costume Exhibition theme is ‘Camp: Notes on Fashion‘. Not “camp” as in sleeping bags and tents, but “camp” as in exaggerated fashion. The exhibit is inspired by Susan Sontag‘s 1964 essay that defines camp as “love of the unnatural: of artifice and exaggeration.”
The gala will be co-hosted by two campy fashion aficionados: Lady Gaga< and Harry Styles. Even more fitting, the entire 2019 event is being sponsored by Gucci. Gucci’s Alessandro Michele, along with tennis icon Serena Williams, will also be joining the two pop stars as co-chairs of the 2019 gala.
Andrew Bolton, the curator in charge of the Costume Institute, revealed that he has been mulling over the theme for several years, telling The New York Times: “We are going through an extreme camp moment, and it felt very relevant to the cultural conversation to look at what is often dismissed as empty frivolity but can be actually a very sophisticated and powerful political tool, especially for marginalised cultures.”
The Met Gala will be held Monday, May 6. In the meantime check out below the best outfits from last year’s Met Gala exhibition below.
Rihanna wearing Maison Margiela by John Galliano.
Rita Ora wearing Prada.
Donatella Versace wearing Versace.
Rosie Huntington-Whiteley wearing Ralph Lauren.
Hailey Baldwin wearing custom Tommy Hilfiger with Tiffany & Co jewellery.
Ariana Grande wearing Vera Wang.
Katy Perry wearing Versace.
Sarah Jessica Parker wearing Dolce & Gabbana.
Priyanka Chopra wearing Ralph Lauren.
Kendall Jenner wearing Off-White with Tiffany & Co jewellery.
Winnie Harlow wearing Tommy Hilfiger.
Jennifer Lopez wearing Balmain with Tiffany & Co jewellery.
Madonna wearing Jean Paul Gaultier.
Gigi Hadid wearing Versace.
Zendaya in Versace with Tiffany & Co jewellery.
Jeremy Scott and Cardi B wearing Moschino.
Cara Delevingne wearing Dior.
Kim Kardashian wearing Versace.
Blake Lively wearing Versace.
Irina Shayk wearing Versace and Bradley Cooper wearing Tom Ford.
#Peace.Love.MetGala2019
