The Met Gala 2019: What is Camp Fashion?
Sam Baldwin reflects on the 2019 Met Gala theme, “Camp: Notes on Fashion,” and creates a runway-ready look of her own.
For lovers of art, fashion, and celebrity style, there is no better place to spend the first Monday of May than the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. The annual Met Gala, organized by Vogue, is a fundraiser and celebration of the Met’s Costume Institute. Every Gala has a theme that reflects the upcoming Costume Institute exhibition. Themes range from 2008’s “Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy” to 2018’s “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination,” but no theme has been as frilly, feathery, and over the top as this year’s theme: “Camp: Notes on Fashion.”
What is camp? The word immediately conjures images of tents, tie-dyes, and Tevas; aka the opposite of the Gala’s glamorous, high-fashion reputation. But in this context, that’s not what camp means at all. Instead, “Camp: Notes on Fashion” is a tribute to Susan Sontag’s 1964 essay about the aesthetic sensibility. Sontag explains that camp, which is often associated with drag queens, is all about being over the top. It’s extravagant, artificial, and so tacky that it’s cute. Camp is doing the most, and then doing some more. Sontag’s essay concludes, “The ultimate Camp statement: it’s good because it’s awful.”
So, with that definition in mind, how did the Gala’s A-list attendees do? For the most part, pretty well. Billy Porter was carried in on a throne by six shirtless men. He was then lowered to reveal a pair of glorious golden wings. One aspect of camp is playing a role, and Porter was quite the performer.
Another standout was Lady Gaga. In true over-the-top Gaga fashion, she walked the runway in not one, but FOUR looks. She began in a gigantic pink gown, shed to an equally voluminous black gown, and moments later lost that gown to reveal a sleek, form-fitting pink dress. But that wasn’t the end. Gaga wiggled free from the pink to reveal a set of sparkling black lingerie. She struck a few poses, then waltzed into the event in just her undies. Talk about an entrance.
Jared Leto carried a replica of his own head, à la Gucci’s Milan Fashion Week show; Katy Perry dressed as a walking chandelier; and Kasey Musgraves looked pretty-in-fuschia as she channeled her inner Barbie.
Yet, while so many celebs brought their campiest looks, a few fell short. I’m looking at you, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kanye West, and Gisele Bündchen. As a staunch lover of themes, it was these stylish, yet uncreative looks that made me think, “Even I could do camp better than that.”
And I did just that. Undeterred by my lack of invitation, personal designer, or funds, I set out to piece together my own campy Met Gala look.
Here’s what I would have worn on my walk up the pink-carpeted steps of the Metropolitan Museum:
My look begins with a Versace mini dress and thigh-high boots. Now, if I really was an A-list celebrity, I would’ve opted for a custom look (a girl can dream, right?), but for now, I’m sticking with ready-to-wears.
The ensemble is a tribute to Andy Warhol’s pop-art designs. I realize that Warhol’s work is not inherently camp. Sontag even says that pop-art is too nihilistic to fit the sensibility. However, I will stand by this look, noting that the color, repetition, and perversion of Warhol’s designs makes the look appear tacky. So tacky, in fact, that it’s cool.
On top of this ensemble, I will add a Saint Laurent heart-shaped fur jacket. The structure is exaggerated, it’s bright, and it’s a bit ridiculous. But camp is camp, and I’m all for it.
Now the basics are complete, but we can’t forget hair, makeup, and accessories. One aspect of the camp aesthetic is to commit to a character. I want to look like I walked straight out of a painting in the Met’s Modern and Contemporary wing.
I would style my hair in a 1960s bob, with a thick headband, and add a pair of large blue hoop earrings. To keep things consistent, I’d opt for a mod makeup look as well.
The most important aspect to any Met Gala look, and especially a tribute to Sontag, is confidence. What made Lady Gaga and Billy Porter stand out so much, among other things, was their commitment to the part and undying confidence. They said “I’m here. And I look FABULOUS.” I like to think I would do the same in my Met Gala look.
Sam Baldwin is both an avid fan of various music genres and the ultra-Bostonian adjective “wicked smaht.” You can follow her on Twitter here.
