Met Gala

Details

The Costume Institute Gala is a major fundraising benefit that serves as an opening celebration for the Institute's annual fashion exhibit. Following the event, the exhibition runs for several months. The 2014 exhibition was scheduled to run from May 8 until August 10, 2014. The Gala is widely regarded as one of the most exclusive social events in New York and one of the biggest fundraising nights in the city with $9 million raised in 2013 and a record of $12 million the following year. It is one of the most notable sources of funding for the Institute. The affair, attended by personalities from the arts, fashion, high-society, film and music, has been held at the Met since 1946 and is considered to be the fashion industry's premier annual red carpet event. Its red carpet fashions are widely photographed, reviewed, critiqued and emulated. The museum is closed to the general public on the first Monday of May due to the gala occurring.

Anna Wintour, Vogue editor-in-chief and a chair of the event since 1995 (excluding 1996 and 1998), oversees both the benefit committee and the guest list, with Vogue staffers helping assemble the list of invitees. According to Cathy Horyn of The New York Times, the gathering rivals the West Coast's Vanity Fair Oscar Party, which is said to have more "star power" but less fashion panache. In 2014, the individual tickets cost $25,000 for those outside the official guest list, after prices were raised $10,000 from the prior year to increase the exclusivity of the event. The annual guest list includes only 650–700 people.

Themes

Each year the event has a theme, and includes a cocktail hour and a formal dinner. During the cocktail hour, guests arrive to walk on the red carpet, tour the years special themed exhibition, and be seated before the dinner party that includes entertainment from the preeminent entertainers of the day. The theme not only sets the tone for the annual exhibit, but also for the guests who attempt to dress to uphold the theme of the year, oftentimes causing runs on certain fashion themes among the world's leading fashion retailers. Sometimes, such as in 2013, the theme is a bit befuddling because it does not provide a clear stylistic directive, while at other times, such as 2014 the theme may be far more challenging to one gender than the other.

1971–1972: Fashion Plate (October 1971 – January 1972)

1972–1973: Untailored Garments (January–July 1972)

1973–1974: The World of Balenciaga (March–September 1973)

1974–1975: Romantic and Glamorous Hollywood Design (November 1974 – August 1975)

1975–1976: American Women of Style (December 1975 – August 1976)

1976–1977: The Glory of Russian Costume (December 1976 – August 1977)

1977–1978: Vanity Fair: A Treasure Trove (December 1977– September 1978)

1978–1979: Diaghilev: Costumes and Designs of the Ballets Russes (November 1978 – June 1979)

1979–1980: Fashions of the Habsburg Era: Austria-Hungary (December 1979 – August 1980)

1980–1981: The Manchu Dragon: Costumes of China, the Chi'ng Dynasty (December 1980 – August 1981)

1981–1982: The Eighteenth-Century Woman (December 1981 – September 1982)

1982–1983: Le Belle Époque (December 1982 – September 1983)

1983–1984: Yves Saint Laurent: 25 Years of Design (December 1983 – September 1984)

1984–1985: Man and the Horse (December 1984 – September 1985)

1985–1986: Costumes of Royal India (December 1985 – August 1986)

1986–1987: Dance (December 1986 – September 1987)

1987–1988: In Style: Celebrating Fifty Years of the Costume Institute (November 1987 – April 1988)

1988–1989: From Queen to Empress: Victorian Dress 1837–1877 (December 1988 – April 1989)

1989–1990: The Age of Napoleon: Costume from Revolution to Empire, 1789–1815 (December 1989 – April 1990)

1990–1991: Théâtre de la Mode – Fashion Dolls: The Survival of Haute Couture (December 1990 – April 1991)

1991–1992: Gala held, but no concurrent costume exhibition

1992–1993: Fashion and History: A Dialogue (December 1992 – March 1993)

1993–1994: Diana Vreeland: Immoderate Style (December 1993 – March 1994)

1994–1995: Orientalism: Visions of the East in western dress (December 1994 – March 1995)

1995–1996: Haute Couture (December 1995 – March 1996)

1996–1997: Christian Dior (December 1996 – March 1997)

1997–1998: Gianni Versace (December 1997 – March 1998)

1998–1999: Cubism and Fashion (December 10, 1998 – March 14, 1999)

1999–2000: Rock Style (December 9, 1999 – March 19, 2000)

2000–2001: No costume exhibition gala presented

2001: Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years (May 1 –July 29, 2001)

2001–2002: No costume exhibition gala presented

2003: Goddess: The Classical Mode (May 1 – August 3, 2003)

2004: Dangerous Liaisons: Fashion and Furniture in the 18th Century (April 2?, –August 8, 2004)

2005: The House of Chanel (May 5 –August 7, 2005)

2006: AngloMania: Tradition and Transgression in British Fashion (May 3 –September 6, 2006)

2007: Poiret: King of Fashion (May 9 –August 5, 2007)

2008: Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy (May 7 –September 1, 2008)

2009: The Model As Muse: Embodying Fashion (May 6 –August 9, 2009)

2010: American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity (May 5 –August 10, 2010)

2011: Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty (May 4 –August 7, 2011)

2012: Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations (May 10 –August 19, 2012)

2013: Punk: Chaos to Couture (May 9 –August 14, 2013)

2014: Charles James: Beyond Fashion (May 8 –August 10, 2014)

2015: China: Through the Looking Glass (May 7 – September 7, 2015)

2016: Manus x Machina: Fashion In An Age Of Technology

2017: Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garçons

The 2015 Gala and its theme of "China: Through the Looking Glass" became the subject of a documentary—The First Monday in May' directed by Andrew Rossi produced by Condé Nast Entertainment, Vogue and Relativity Studios. 225 approved photographers, reporters and social media participants will document the event for the documentary. All other attendees were forbidden from using social media at the event.

Honorary Event Day Chairs

In addition to Wintour's role of chairing the whole event, there are annual chairs and co-chairs for the day of the event. The list of past honorary event day chairs includes the following:

1995: Karl Lagerfeld and Gianni Versace December 7, 1998: None December 6, 1999: None April 23, 2001: Caroline Kennedy and Edwin A. Schlossberg April 28, 2003: None April 26, 2004: Jacob Rothschild and Jayne Wrightsman May 2, 2005: Caroline, Princess of Hanover May 1, 2006: Rose Marie Bravo and Stoker Cavendish May 7, 2007: François-Henri Pinault May 5, 2008: Giorgio Armani May 4, 2009: Marc Jacobs May 3, 2010: None May 2, 2011: François-Henri Pinault and Salma Hayek May 7, 2012: Jeff Bezos May 6, 2013: Beyoncé May 5, 2014: Aerin Lauder May 4, 2015: Silas Chou May 2, 2016: Taylor Swift May 3, 2017: TBA

Controversy

In 2015 the theme "China: Through the Looking Glass" was previously named "Chinese Whispers: Tales of the East in Art, Film and Fashion". The same year's theme was met with critics saying it was "A reminder of the subtle institutionalised racism that's been compounded by centuries of Asian isolationism across the board, and enduring Western stereotypes exacerbated by ignorance and the meme-able nature of social media."

In 2016, Madonna whilst channeling the theme "Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology", provided one of the most controversial outfits in the gala's history. She appeared in an ensemble designed by Givenchy creative director Riccardo Tisci exposing both her breasts and buttocks. Madonna hit back on her official social media channels by stating "We have fought and continue to fight for civil rights and gay rights around the world. When it comes to women’s rights we are still in the dark ages. My dress at the Met Ball was a political statement as well as a fashion statement".