On the first Monday of May each year since 1971, the Met Gala has corralled the biggest and brightest in fashion, art, and entertainment to New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art to fête its annual Costume Institute exhibit and raise money. Guests are expected to dress according to the theme of the Costume Institute exhibit—this year, look forward to opulent, religious-inspired gowns in line with the museum’s recently-announced 2018 show “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination.”
Notable Costume Institute exhibits from years past include “Diaghilev: Costumes and Designs of the Ballets Russes” (1978), “The Age of Napoleon: Costume from Revolution to Empire” (1989), “Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty” (2011) and most recently, “Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garçons: Art of the In-Between” (2017). We’ve rounded up some of the wildest, most iconic red carpet looks to grace the Met Gala red carpet in honor of the museum’s announcement of its upcoming show and gala theme.
Cher in Bob Mackie (1974)
Cher did the “naked dress” right at the opening of “Romantic and Glamorous Hollywood Design” in this glittering ensemble by Bob Mackie that Kim Kardashian later attempted to re-create at the Met Gala in 2015.
Sarah Jessica Parker and Alexander McQueen in Alexander McQueen (2006)
Fashion icon and designer friend-duo Sarah Jessica Parker and Alexander McQueen were perfectly on-theme for the Costume Institute’s 2006 show, “AngloMania: Tradition and Transgression in British Fashion” in matching tartan ensembles.
Kate Moss and Marc Jacobs in Marc Jacobs (2009)
Supermodel Kate Moss and designer Marc Jacobs embraced their longstanding friendship and years of work together at the opening of “The Model As Muse: Embodying Fashion” in 2009.
Daphne Guinness in Alexander McQueen (2011)
Brewery heiress and fashion collector Daphne Guinness payed tribute to her close friend, the late Alexander McQueen, at the Costume Institute’s 2011 retrospective “Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty,” in a feathered gown of his creation.
Rihanna in Guo Pei (2015)
Rihanna was the first and only celebrity to wear this gown off the haute-couture runway of Beijing-based designer Guo Pei at the opening of “China: Through the Looking Glass” in 2015. “Only women who have the confidence of a queen could wear it,” Guo told Fashionista.