The first Monday in May is a significant date for anyone interested in the fashion world, pop culture, and those with a Vogue subscription. This date signifies, of course, the Met Gala– an annual haute couture fundraising festival to benefit the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art.
Each year, a theme is chosen based on the spring exhibition at the MoMA and the theme then acts as a dress code for all those invited to follow.
This year’s theme was titled: “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” with the dress code being “Tailored for You”. This was supposed to focus on the history and influence of Black dandyism on the Western world and how fashion has been used as a tool of both enslavement and liberation.
Some followed the theme beautifully and wore pieces in reference to famous Black people in American history or designed by talented Black designers. Others ignored the dress code and showed up in a blazer mini dress… I’m looking at you, Hailey Bieber. While this was most likely a reference to a zoot suit, a suit style of the 1940s popularized by Black men in Chicago, it was wildly overdone and got boring very quickly. This is the Met Gala people, Jared Leto once brought a clone of his own head, where’s the drama?
Others that bored me: Sofia Richie Grainge, Sabrina Carpenter, Heidi Klum, Kendall Jenner, Callum Turner, Joe Burrow and Lorde.
Being invited to the Met Gala is a prestigious honor, I would assume, and showing up in a boring look is just a slap in the face. Sofia Richie gave us the slicked back bun and white dress that has become her uniform– nothing new.
Kendall Jenner and Hailey Bieber were basically twinning with their boring blazer dresses and Sabrina Carpenter’s was just ugly, sorry not sorry. Heidi Klum was wearing a Windsor prom dress. Men need to stop being invited to the Met if they are going to be basic like Callum Turner and Joe Burrow. Finally, Lorde looked like a fork.
My favorite looks of the night came from the four co-hosts alongside Anna Wintour: A$AP Rocky, Pharrell Williams, Lewis Hamilton and Colman Domingo. These men truly embraced the theme and didn’t show up in a plain tuxedo… that’s you, Jeremy Allen White.
A$AP Rocky wore one of his own designs inspired from the clothing he saw growing up in Harlem. Pharrell Williams currently serves as Louis Vuitton’s new men’s creative director and wore pieces from the legacy line. His jacket was made of pearls which was stunning.
Lewis Hamilton and his designer spent three months on research and two months bringing his outfit to life– showing just how seriously he took his co-host duties. Finally, Colman Domingo had an outfit change where he walked onto the blue carpet in a cobalt cape which then revealed a suit underneath. When you look into the meaning behind all of these men’s looks, it’s truly incredible what they came up with.
These men can be invited back next year. I do think we need to have a spreadsheet to make sure no one shows up in the same look, however. Zendaya and Anna Sawai wearing virtually the same white pantsuit and hat was awkward and boring. Neither should have been allowed to wear the pantsuit.
Regardless, the dedication that these designers go through is unfathomable and I really appreciate the attendants who put thought behind what they wear. While I am disappointed in those that didn’t take the theme seriously or even put an ounce of thought into research, it’s refreshing to see so many Black voices and designers highlighted.
With how prevalent and growing the racism in this country is, it’s important that Black history is not erased. This seems like an obvious statement, but many didn’t understand the theme so I’m just throwing it out there.
The Met Gala itself is an absurd display of wealth and inequality; I felt like I was in the Hunger Games watching the Capitol parade around their prettiest and wealthiest. But it’s fun to appreciate the fashion, art and hard work that goes into it. I will probably tune in next year to criticize haute couture from my couch in my pjs.
