What is the Met Gala?
The Met Gala is one of the biggest events for fashion and pop culture and is regarded as one of the most exclusive social events in the world. It happens on the first Monday in May of each year and is located at the Metropolitan Museum of Art located in the. It is an annual fundraising gala help for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute and is an invite only event. It takes place in New York City and is a prestigious and sought-after event. The invite list is full of celebrities that range from sports to actresses to singers to fashion icons. The current editor of Vogue decides the list and chooses who to invite. Currently, Anna Wintor has been the editor since 1995 and has decided who gets to attend the event. Each year there is a theme that is assigned, and guests often try to focus their fashion to the theme, but it is not required. This event serves as an opening celebration of the Institute of Fashion. The Met curates an exhibition to the chosen theme and opens the exhibit that the guest can view and then it is open to public the day after the event. The Met Gala event itself consist of a red-carpet event, cocktail hour, dinner, opening look at the exhibit and afterparties.
The History of the Gala
The first Met Gala was in 1948 and was founded by fashion publicist Eleanor Lambert. She
wanted to create this gala to fundraise for the Costume Institute and to celebrate the opening
of the annual exhibit. The Costume Institute itself was created by Aline Bernstein and Irene
Lewisohn two-years prior. The first Met Galas consisted of a dinner held in December at a
variety of locations (Central Park, Rainbow Room, etc.) and the tickets went for only $50. The
purpose of the gala was to fundraise towards the Costume Institute. The event didn’t become
as glamorized as it is today until 1972 when Diana Vreeland became the consultant to the
Institute. The Gala evolved into a glamorous event and was now aimed towards the societal set.
She turned it into a party atmosphere and made it more appealing to the public. The press it
received also helped it become well known event it is today. This is when themes were
introduced and when it became an exclusive event actually located right at the museum. They
upped the prices of the tickets to $1,000 in the 70s and costed $3,500 by the end of the 90s. In
2010s, the Gala became very focused on celebrity figures and began costing $25,000 for a ticket
and $250,000 for a 10-person table. Even if you are not a celebrity and have the money, there is
a long waiting list to get approved for an invite to the Gala and still then you have to be
approved by Anna Wintor. The Met gala today is one of the biggest fundraising events in New
York City. The Met Gala has raised more than $175 million for the Costume Institute.
Why Does it Matter?
So, why does the Met Gala matter? In the grand scheme of things, it doesn't matter that much. The Gala provides entertainment and inspiration such as the Superbowl does for some. It showcases fashion in unique and one-of-a-kind ways. The Met Gala also is sometimes viewed as just one big party for celebrities but it really is so much more. It's known as fashion's biggest event for a reason and each year we are able to witness some of the greatest pieces. Fashion as a whole is an art so the Gala is almost like a huge art exhibit. Each year so many designers get to work on amazing couture specifically for the Met Gala’s theme. It is so interesting the variety of ways designers interpret the theme and really shows how unique and diverse fashion is. Fashion is an art form and the Met Gala is able to display some of the most exquisite fashion out there. The Gala is able to raise so much funds to go right into the fashion institute which provides more exhibits and art to the public. To some people the Gala probably seems very silly and not worthy of caring about which might be true for some people. But when really dissected and studied, it is amazing to witness this spectacular event.
Sources:
History of the Met Gala throughout the years
History and significance of the Met Gala