From Camp to Gilded Glamour: A look back at iconic Met Gala themes
From Camp to Gilded Glamour: A look back at iconic Met Gala themes
ANGELINE JANE BERNABEFri, May 1, 2026 at 5:52 PM UTC
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From Camp to Gilded Glamour: A look back at iconic Met Gala themes
The 2026 Met Gala is almost here, and anticipation is building over all of the fashion moments that the event will bring.
Over the years, stars across fashion, film and music have delivered some of the most iconic style moments at the annual charity event, which originated in 1948 and began assigning specific themes aligned with the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute exhibits in the 1970s, after former Vogue Editor-in-Chief Diana Vreeland was named as a special consultant to the institute.
Vreeland has been credited with moving the gala to the Met, where guests could mingle among the museum's exhibits, and for turning the annual party -- previously an industry event for fashion insiders and socialites -- into a lavish affair full of celebrity guests and other prominent figures.
Following Vreeland's reign from 1972 to 1987 and Pat Buckley's term as a consultant to the Costume Institute from 1988 to 1995, current Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour took up the reins, continuing Vreeland's legacy and evolving the Met Gala further into the star-studded, glamorous event it is today.
Met Gala 2025: 'Superfine: Tailoring Black Style' theme, hosts, and more
Neilson Barnard/mg22/Getty Images - PHOTO: Tessa Thompson arriving at The 2022 Met Gala Celebrating "In America: An Anthology of Fashion" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 02, 2022 in New York City.
Ahead of this year's Met Gala -- the theme and dress code for which are "Costume Art" and "Fashion is Art," respectively -- we're taking a look at some of Wintour's most memorable Met Galas from the past.
2025: 'Superfine: Tailoring Black Style'
Cindy Ord/MG25/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue - PHOTO: Rihanna attends The 2025 Met Gala Celebrating "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style" at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 05, 2025 in New York City.
Last year's theme was "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style." According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the theme explored "the importance of style to the formation of Black identities in the Atlantic diaspora, particularly in the United States and Europe."
For the gala, the dress code was "Tailored for You," which was a "nod to the exhibition's focus on suiting and menswear, from specific silhouettes to various fabrics and accessories -- that is purposefully designed to both provide guidance and invite creative interpretation," according to a press release.
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue - PHOTO: Met Gala Co-Chair A$AP Rocky attends the 2025 Met Gala Celebrating "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style" at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 05, 2025 in New York City.
Many stars flawlessly executed the dress code including Rihanna, who stepped out in a head-to-toe Marc Jacobs. Her partner, A$AP Rocky, wore his own design.
2024: 'Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion'
Neilson Barnard/mg24/Getty Images - PHOTO: Zendaya attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating "Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City.
The theme for 2024 was "Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion." The related Costume Institute exhibit focused on nature and "sleeping beauties," a term used to describe "garments that can no longer be dressed on mannequins due to their extreme fragility," according to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic/Getty Images - PHOTO: Zendaya attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating "Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City.
The dress code for the 2024 Met Gala was "The Garden of Time," inspired by J.G. Ballard's 1962 book of the same name, according to Vogue, which described the theme as "fleeting beauty." Memorable looks from the night included Tyla's sands of time-inspired look from Balmain, and Zendaya's two dramatic looks from John Galliano and Givenchy.
Met Gala 2024: See celebrity looks from fashion's biggest night
2022: 'In America: An Anthology of Fashion'
Kevin Mazur/mg22/Getty Images - PHOTO: Blake Lively arrives at The 2022 Met Gala Celebrating "In America: An Anthology of Fashion" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 02, 2022 in New York City.
In 2022, after two pandemic postponements, the Met Gala returned on the first Monday in May with the theme "In America: An Anthology of Fashion," inspired by the Costume Institute exhibit of the same name. That exhibit followed "In America: A Lexicon of Fashion," which was hosted the year prior at the Met's Anna Wintour Costume Center. Both iterations of the theme focused on American style.
Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images - PHOTO: Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson arrive for the 2022 Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 2, 2022, in New York.
Blake Lively's multicolored Versace gown was a standout look for the evening's dress code, "Gilded Glamour." Another buzzworthy moment from the night was when Kim Kardashian stepped out in Marilyn Monroe's iconic "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" dress, which was originally designed by Bob Mackie and created by costume designer Jean Louis.
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2019: 'Camp: Notes on Fashion'
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images - PHOTO: Lady Gaga attends The 2019 Met Gala Celebrating Camp: Notes on Fashion at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2019 in New York City.
Perhaps the most over-the-top Met Gala was in 2019, when the event's theme was "Camp: Notes on Fashion." That year, the exhibit, inspired by Susan Sontag's essay, "Notes on 'Camp,'" explored how the elements of irony, humor, parody, pastiche, artifice, theatricality and exaggeration are expressed in fashion, according to the Met.
A specific dress code wasn't highlighted ahead of the event, but in her "Go Ask Anna" Vogue series on YouTube, Wintour said that the exhibition that year was about "self-expression and individuality." Looks that caught the eye of many that night included Cardi B's custom Thom Browne gown, Jared Leto's all-red look designed by Alessandro Michele for Gucci (which he accessorized with a bust of his own head), and Lady Gaga's hot-pink look from Brandon Maxwell, which included a performative aspect on the carpet.
2018: 'Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination'
John Shearer/Getty Images - PHOTO: Rihanna attends the Heavenly Bodies: Fashion & The Catholic Imagination Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, May 7, 2018, in New York.
At the 2018 Met Gala, celebrities donned their "Sunday Best" for the theme "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination." That year, the exhibit focused on how Catholicism has influenced fashion throughout the ages.
Memorable looks from the gala included Rihanna's pearl and crystal Maison Margiela papal-inspired gown and Lively's dramatic Atelier Versace gown, which she accessorized with a halo-inspired headpiece.
2015: 'China: Through the Looking Glass'
Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images - PHOTO: Rihanna arrives at the 2015 Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute Gala benefit in honor of the museums latest exhibit China: Through the Looking Glass, May 4, 2015, in New York.
Rihanna's most iconic Met Gala moment came in 2015. In a nod that year's theme, "China: Through the Looking Glass," she wore an opulent, golden yellow Guo Pei design with a fur-trimmed train. The theme focused on the impact of Chinese aesthetics on Western fashion and how China has fueled the fashionable imagination for centuries, according to the Met Museum.
2012: 'Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations'
Kevin Mazur/WireImage/Getty Images - PHOTO: Beyonce Knowles attends the "Schiaparelli And Prada: Impossible Conversations" Costume Institute Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, May 7, 2012, in New York.
The 2012 Met Gala exhibit and theme was "Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations." It explored the "striking parallels between Elsa Schiaparelli and Miuccia Prada," according to Vogue.
Beyoncé famously closed the carpet that year in a stunning, feathered Givenchy Haute Couture gown.
2011: 'Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty'
Kevin Mazur/WireImage/Getty Images - PHOTO: Taylor Swift attends the "Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty" Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, May 2, 2011, in New Yok.
In 2011, the Met celebrated the work of the late British fashion designer Alexander McQueen with the exhibition and theme "Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty." In attendance at the Met Gala that year were Naomi Campbell, Renée Zellweger, Madonna, Taylor Swift and more.
2010: 'American Woman: Fashioning A National Identity'
Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images - PHOTO: Oscar de la Renta and Oprah Winfrey attend the Costume Institute Gala Benefit to celebrate the opening of the "American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity" exhibition at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, May 3, 2010, in New York.
Oprah Winfrey was the star of the 2010 Met Gala, which spotlighted the theme 'American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity." The gala supported the exhibit of the same name, which explored developing perceptions of the modern American woman from 1890 to 1940 and how they have affected the way American women are seen today, according to the Met Museum website.
2009: 'The Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion'
Patrick McMullan via Getty Image - PHOTO: Blake Lively attends the Met Gala: "The Model As Muse" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, May 4, 2009, in New York.
The 2009 Met Gala theme and exhibition was "The Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion," which explored the relationship between photographers and models or models and designers. In a video for Vogue in 2021, Wintour recalled that the event "was the night that Blake [Lively] took the world by storm."
For the 2009 gala, Lively wore a cobalt blue Versace gown with a thigh-high slit and one sheer sleeve. "This was a dress that was certainly worn to be noticed," Wintour said in 2021.
1999: 'Rock Style'
Mari Sarai/Getty Images - PHOTO: Liv Tyler & Stella Mccartney
"Rock Style" was the theme for the 1999 Met Gala, which coincided with an exhibit that celebrated rock 'n' roll music and style. That year, the Costume Institute partnered with the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and museum, showcasing styles from Elvis Presley, Aretha Franklin, Janis Joplin, The Beatles and more. In the 2021 Vogue video, Wintour recalled the red carpet looks of Stella McCartney and Liv Tyler, who both wore shirts that McCartney designed with the words "Rock Royalty" on them.
1996: 'Christian Dior'
Patrick Mcmullan via Getty Images - PHOTO: Princess Diana attends the Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Jan. 1, 1995, in New York.
While the Met Gala celebrated iconic designer Christian Dior in 1996, all eyes were on fashion icon and humanitarian Princess Diana, who attended the event following her divorce from Prince Charles. The 1996 Met Gala was the first and only Met Gala she ever attended.
For the event, Diana wore a silk Dior slip dress, accessorizing it with a sapphire and multi-strand pearl choker and a Lady Dior bag, which was formerly called the Chouchou, according to Vogue, and was renamed in honor of Diana.
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