The Metropolitan Museum of Art has announced the theme for the 2026 Met Gala, which will honour the Costume Institute's spring exhibition titled 'Costume Art.' The dress code, 'Fashion is Art,' invites guests to express their personal relationship with fashion as an embodied art form and celebrate depictions of the dressed body throughout art history.
The 2025 Met Gala theme, 'Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,' celebrated the influence of Black fashion and dandyism on global style. The dress code, 'Tailored for You,' encouraged reinterpretations of classic suiting, resulting in a red carpet filled with sharp silhouettes and bold patterns. The exhibition was the first dedicated entirely to menswear since 2003's 'Men in Skirts.'
In 2024, the theme 'Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion' focused on reviving historical garments too delicate to wear. The exhibition featured approximately 250 rare items spanning over 400 years. The dress code, 'The Garden of Time,' inspired by J.G. Ballard's short story, led to floral and nature-inspired designs. Co-chairs included Zendaya, Bad Bunny, Jennifer Lopez, and Chris Hemsworth.
The 2023 Met Gala paid homage to the late Karl Lagerfeld, showcasing over 150 garments from his six-decade career at Chanel, Fendi, Chloé, and his namesake brand. Attendees like Doja Cat dressed as Lagerfeld's cat, Choupette.
Previous themes include 'Gilded Glamour' in 2022, inspired by the Gilded Age, and 'In America: A Lexicon of Fashion' in 2021, which highlighted American designers. The 2019 theme 'Camp: Notes on Fashion' saw stars like Zendaya and Lady Gaga in showstopping ensembles, while 2018's 'Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination' paid tribute to religious art.
