Record $42 million, Beyoncé in a skeleton dress, and an "aged" Bad Bunny – highlights of the Met Gala
Kyiv • UNN
The Met Gala raised a record $42 million under the theme "Fashion is Art." Beyoncé stunned in a skeleton dress, while protests broke out against the backdrop of Bezos's sponsorship.
Hundreds of stars ascended the steps of New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art on Monday night for the Met Gala, showcasing diverse interpretations of this year's dress code, "Fashion is Art," and raising a record $42 million, UNN reports, citing CNN.
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Guests climbed the grand staircase against a backdrop of lush greenery reminiscent of Monet's paintings—the museum created a picturesque setting adorned with romantic hanging flowers, green hedges, lavender pots, and a carpet resembling moss-covered brick.
The theme echoed the accompanying exhibition, "Costume Art," at the Metropolitan Museum's Costume Institute, for which this gala is a primary source of income. This year, the Met Gala raised a record $42 million, surpassing last year's record of $31 million, as the museum announced at a press conference prior to the event.
The evening's co-chairs included Vogue's Anna Wintour, Venus Williams, Nicole Kidman, and Beyoncé, who returned to the event after a ten-year hiatus in a shimmering skeleton dress by Olivier Rousteing, bringing her daughter Blue Ivy for her Met Gala debut.
Organizers invited guests to "express their attitude toward fashion as an embodied form of art." Stars drew inspiration from the canons of art history, with early looks subtly referencing the theme and more theatrical interpretations emerging throughout the evening.
This year's event sparked unusual controversy due to its lead sponsors, Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos: protests were planned throughout New York, and one protester attempted to breach the event perimeter before being stopped by police. Sánchez Bezos appeared to convey a message of her own this evening in a Schiaparelli gown inspired by John Singer Sargent's portrait of Madame X—an image of a socialite who was a scandal in her own right.
Some of the evening's most striking looks played with anatomy and the body, from Beyoncé's stunning skeleton to Lisa's white veiled gown designed by Robert Wun, which framed her face with additional pairs of hands. Heidi Klum disguised herself as a living statue, while Bad Bunny was (almost) unrecognizable, having "aged" several decades.
"I always try to do something new," the singer told Vogue on the red carpet, joking that his look took "53 years" to create.