Met Gala 2021: American Independence
The Met Gala, formally known as the Costume Institute Gala or the Costume Institute Benefit is the most extravagant event of the year. This gala takes place on the first Monday of May every year. It is an annual charity gala hosted for the benefit of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in New York City. However, this year, owing to the pandemic the event was rescheduled. This blockbuster event is considered “The jewel in New York City’s social crown.” This year’s theme for the night was “ In America: a Lexicon of Fashion.”
The Beginning
Since 1948 New York’s richest have been gracing this exclusive social event with their presence. The first Met Gala was nothing but a midnight dinner, and the tickets were worth $50 each, but that was back in 1948. In the present time, one ticket alone will cost you $35,000 and money alone will not earn you a seat at this raucous gala; yes, you read that correctly. This event is by invitation only, and even after getting invited, there is a lengthy waitlist. Anna Wintour, the editor-in-chief for Vogue oversees the whole event as the chairman of the institute, she is the one who determines which A-list celebrities are worthy of walking the Red carpet.
This year’s eye-catching outfits
This year the most eye-catching outfit was worn by none other than Kim Kardashian West. She arrived at the event in a black Balenciaga jersey, and when asked about how her outfit for the night relates to this year’s theme which was “ In America: a lexicon of fashion ” her reply was, “ What’s more American than a T-shirt head to toe? ” The internet went gaga over this outfit and almost everyone took a chance at the all-black outfit, from meme pages to well-known celebrities and even Kim’s makeup artist himself.
Whereas Lil Nas X made his debut at the Met Gala and left the crowd in awe with his golden tin man outfit, this popular rockstar pulled off three regal outfits designed by Versace on the red carpet. He arrived in an ornate cape with intricate gold beadings and later took it off to reveal a golden suit of armor underneath; but no it did not end there, the final outfit was a slinky bodysuit with the signature Versace house print.
Now, how can we discuss Met Gala and not talk about Jennifer Lopez? J-Lo left everyone stunned with her Ralph — Lauren ensemble, the all-American outfit was made of faux feathers and was a very creative twist to our usual cowgirl outfits.
Famous Controversies
The Met Gala is one of the most well-known sources of revenue for the entire foundation. In 2019, the total amount raised exceeded $200 million. But no Gala comes without a little drama, you say? We all surely remember all the rebellious fashion moments which took place during this event, such as Madonna’s 2016 Givenchy gown which she described as both a political and a fashion statement, or maybe Rihanna’s take on the Roman Catholic theme. This social gathering has a reputation for picking the most difficult and occasionally contentious theme available.
This year’s fashion controversy was our favorite political representative from the United States of America, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. She arrived at the event in her custom Brother Vellies ivory wool jacket dress with the message written on the back of the dress “ Tax the Rich .” Her dress has been stirring up several debates since then, some people thought of her dress as a bold statement, something that people needed to hear, whereas many tweets came forward calling her a fraud for sending the message of taxing the rich while she was hanging out with a bunch of wealthy leftwing elites.
Talking of controversies, we cannot forget to mention Cara Delevigne’s “ Peg the Patriarchy ” outfit by Dior. The actress was all over Twitter with her magnificent-looking outfit, and the message was circulated widely. But, what is Met Gala without a few controversies? Luna Matatas, a sex and pleasure educator from Toronto, the official creator of the statement “ Peg the Patriarchy ”, who also got this statement trademarked on her name in 2018 in Canada, woke up and saw her coined statement was worn to only the most enchanting event of the year. Luna was neither asked nor given any credit for her phrase, this stirred up a lot of heat between small business owners on Twitter. Luna said that when she tried to contact the team of Dior or Cara’s team herself she received no response at all. According to legal officials in the States Delevigne’s outfit was nothing but Cara expressing her views on a matter.
This year’s event was co-chaired by the musician Billie Eilish, the actor Timothee Chalamet, the poet Amanda Gorman, and the famous Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka alongside the chairman Anna Wintour, editor-in-chief of Vogue. All the celebrities tried to do justice to the theme of the year and tried to portray America as they see it. Lili Reinhart wore all the state flowers of the country on her dress and Debbie Harry referenced the flag in her dress, some did justice to the theme and well some tried.
