Everything you need to know about the upcoming Met Gala 2022
Dubbed fashion’s biggest night out, this May 2 will see New York light up as it celebrates the 2022 Met Gala.
After two years of Covid chaos, the Met Gala continues its tradition of being held on the first Monday in the month of May at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s American Wing period rooms.
The theme for this year - “In America: An Anthology of Fashion”, is the part two to last year’s part one, “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion”. The theme, also referred to as “Gilded Glamour” is in commemoration of the American style, and celebrates the development of the American design.
The ball is an homage to American history, particularly that of the Gilded Age, which ran roughly from 1870 to 1900.
The era in America is known for industrialisation, when businessmen like John D. Rockefeller, J.P. Morgan, and Cornelius Vanderbilt made their fortunes.
For those new to the Met Ball, it is also a fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which is why those who are not invited can quickly get a spot in the guest list should they donate a ton of money to the art museum.
Celebrity co-hosts for the annual event have officially been announced, and this includes Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Regina King and Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Honorary co-chairs for this year remain the same - Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, designer Tom Ford and head of Instagram Adam Mosseri.
The exhibition will open its doors to the public on May 7, and will showcase pieces from America’s favourite designers like Ralph Lauren, Donna Karan, and Calvin Klein. Up-and-coming designers will also be included in the lineup of the exhibition for this year in order to highlight the diversity and spirit of American fashion.
Parts one and two of this year’s Met Gala will conclude Sep 5.
Who's invited to the Met Gala?
An official guest list has yet to be announced, much less confirmed attendees. Due to this year’s theme heavily relying on American cinema, it is highly likely that the eight film directors responsible for the Met’s period rooms’ cinematic vignettes will attend.
These include Janicza Bravo, Sofia Coppola, Julie Dash, Tom Ford, Regina King, Martin Scorsese, Autumn de Wilde, and Chloé Zhao.
How to get into the Met Gala - if you’re not famous yourself?
Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour has taken the guest list very seriously since 1995, as she does other aspects of the event such as seating arrangements.
Only 600 to 700 guests are invited each year. If you would like to be one of them however, you could consider one or more of these options - date someone super famous, work at Vogue, perform at the Gala, sponsor the gala, beg Anna Wintour to let you buy a ticket (once Kate Upton paid a whopping $25,000 for a seat) or failing that, enlist to be a waiter at the ball.
Head curator of the Museum of Modern Art’s Costume Institute Andrew Bolton told Vogue that the exhibition this year will provide a historical context for Lexicon..
“What’s exciting for me is that some of the names will be very familiar to students of fashion, like Charles James, Halston, and Oscar de la Renta, but a lot of the other names really have been forgotten, overlooked or relegated into the footnotes of fashion history,” he said.
The main goal is to spotlight talents and contributions of such individuals, many of whom, he added, are women.
“I think that the emphasis on conscious creativity was really consolidated during the pandemic and the social justice movements.
“And I’ve been really impressed by American designers’ responses to the social and political climate, particularly around issues of body inclusivity and gender fluidity, and I’m just finding their work very, very self-reflective,” he explained.
Weird rules Met Gala attendees must adhere to
There are weird rules that those on the guest list must adhere to such as the no selfie rule, which had been broken by a few rebellious celebrities before.
No one under the age of 18 is allowed at the ball, and the acts of smoking or having onion breath are frowned upon at the event - so much so that Wintour made sure that certain foods are not served at the ball at all.
Last year, Vogue live streamed the Met Gala on its website. The coverage was hosted by actor and recording artist Keke Palmer, and actor-writer-director Ilana Glazer.
Fans of the Met Gala can expect to watch the live stream once again this year on Vogue’s website.
