Zendaya wears Maison Margiela by John Galliano as she attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images)
As the annual Met Gala commences, the hallowed steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City become a spectacle of fashion as luminaries from all corners of the globe vaunt their interpretations of the event’s theme. This year, the theme , The Garden of Time, draws inspiration from the Costume Institute’s latest exhibition, Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion , and pays homage to J.G. Ballard’s tale of the same name.
As explained by the institution, the exhibition is not about ‘florals for spring’ but, rather, serves as a poignant retrospective showcasing garments so delicate they are forever consigned to the realm of memory, never to grace a living form again. Guests are implored to contemplate mortality, mirroring Ballard’s tale of a count and countess who resort to plucking crystal flowers from their garden in a futile attempt to turn back time, only to face the inevitable march of entropy as they are besieged.
Like the concepts that have come before it, this year’s theme lends well to the imagination, giving way to infinite interpretations. And while many a controversy has been stirred from the looks of invitees, risk is all part of the event’s pageantry. After all, the worst thing you can do at the Met? Play it safe.
As the guests start rolling in, there is a pervasive sense of dark romanticism on the red carpet. From Zendaya in Maison Margiela Haute Couture to Sienna Miller in fresh-off-the-runway Chloé and Taylor Russell in custom Loewe , subversive florals are sure to be a major trend among guests.
Join us as we round up the best looks of the 2024 Met Gala below.
Dua Lipa in Marc Jacobs attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Gigi Hadid in Thom Browne attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Cardi B attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
Ayo Edebiri in Loewe attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images)
Taylor Russell attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Kylie Jenner in Givenchy archive attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage)
Kendall Jenner in archive Givenchy 1999 attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue)
Ariana Grande in custom Loewe attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Emma Chamberlain in custom Jean Paul Gaultier at the 2024 Met Gala: “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” held at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 6, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
Anok Yai attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage)
Amanda Seyfried in custom Prada attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
Kim Kardashian in custom Maison Margiela Couture attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
Nicole Kidman in custom Balenciaga attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage)
Lana Del Rey in Alexander McQueen at the 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage)
Jennifer Lopez in custom Schiaparelli attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images)
Naomi Campbell in custom Burberry attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage)
Amelia Gray Hamlin in Undercover attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage)
Naomi Watts in custom Balenciaga attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Iris Law attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage)
Elle Fanning in Balmain attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Penélope Cruz attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue)
Charli XCX at the 2024 Met Gala: “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” held at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 6, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
Lea Michele in Rodarte for “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” held at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 6, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
Chloë Sevigny attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue)
Gwendoline Christie in custom Maison Margiela at the 2024 Met Gala: “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” held at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 6, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
Lizzo attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
FKA twigs in Stella McCartney attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage)
Elizabeth Debicki attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue)
Cara Delevingne in Stella McCartney attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Hanani Taylor attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
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