Met Gala 2018: Who, What and (What They'll) Wear
It's finally May, which means one thing: we're only a few days away from the 2018 Met Gala, the annual fundraiser ball for the Costume Institute at New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art. Taking place on 7 May, the event will be attended by the who's who of fashion — designers, industry insiders and models — as well as celebrities, all dressed to the nines in the most imaginative and beautiful couture. Needless to say, the Met Gala is a big deal. Below, we present a rundown of what you need to know about the highly-anticipated first Monday of the month, starting with the theme:
As is custom, the theme of the Met Gala follows the theme of the Costume Institute's latest exhibition, which this year is gloriously titled "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination". With the aim of showing the connections between fashion and Catholic art, the exhibition will feature over 40 papal garments and accessories from the Sistine Chapel — many of which have never been seen outside the Vatican before. That's on top of over 150 designer pieces by the likes of Gianni Versace, Riccardo Tisci, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Dolce & Gabbana that will be on display as a means to explore the influence of catholicism in design.
Pretty much the face of the Met Ball (and fashion in general), American Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour will chair the gala as she has been doing since 1995. This year, she'll also be joined by a line-up of equally influential women: Rihanna (the queen of serving looks at the Met Gala), Amal Clooney and Donatella Versace, who'll be celebrating her eponymous label's 40th anniversary. The guestlist of the ball will be no less star-studded. Expect to see famous faces including models Kendall Jenner, Gigi and Bella Hadid, as well as power celebrities like Kim Kardashian West and Beyoncé.
This year's theme may be a little tricky to get around for those who would want to wear something more revealing, but we wouldn't rule out the possibility yet. The Met Gala has seen many a surprising — sometimes bordering on outrageous — outfit grace its red carpet, from Rihanna's yellow "omelette" gown by Guo Pei in 2015 to Katy Perry's head-to-toe scarlet tulle look by Maison Margiela last year. Speaking of colours, we can probably expect to see several dresses in gold, red, white and blue — all primary hues that hold a symbolic importance in Medieval art. Below, we've picked a few looks from the SS18 Haute Couture season that we just might see on our favourite celebrities on Monday.
