The Metropolitan Museum of Art hosted its annual Met Gala gala on Monday, May 4, with hundreds of A-list celebrities walking the red carpet with custom designer pieces aligning with the year’s theme: “Fashion is Art.” This was inspired by the opening of The Met’s new exhibit, “Costume Art,” inspiring many celebrities to showcase outfits that had different interpretations and drastic variations. Celebrities’ utilization of makeup, hair, jewelry and clothing worked in tandem to create a plethora of very vibrant, specific looks across the gala.

Like most years, adherence to the theme fluctuated between people who committed to the bit, and those who ignored it altogether. This year, many celebrities embodied the theme in all facets, choosing to mimic specific statues, paintings and drawings in both obvious and subtle ways. However, many people also simply wore dresses with prints of paintings on them, which feels like a cop-out and doesn’t add anything interesting to an event that is meant to showcase creativity. 

Furthermore, most celebrities went overly niche with their outfits, attempting subtlety but instead embodying “less is more” a little too seriously. Despite this, the Gala still managed to serve as the yearly pinnacle of fashion, as those who took the risk managed to deliver in astonishing ways. 

ANOK YAI

Commanding the attention of the carpet, the Fashion Awards’ 2025 Model of the Year Anok Yai stunned at this year’s Met Gala in a custom, hooded, black Balenciaga gown and a golden prosthetic wig. Inspired by weeping Sicilian statues and “Mater Dolorosa” — a depiction of Virgin Mary — Yai incorporated glimmering, statue-like makeup to emphasize Mary’s teary disposition in the original statue, accentuated with synthetic, gold tears sliding down her cheeks. While getting ready with Vanity Fair, Yai commented on her appreciation for the collaboration and creativity that the Met Gala evokes, her own outfit designed to be a combination between Black culture, Italian culture and the Balenciaga brand.

Yet, despite drawing inspiration from a variety of sources, none of Yai’s noted influences were most obvious in her makeup and dress. Although Yai undoubtedly shines, she doesn’t do so in the way most people expect a statue to do, leaving her reference of “Mater Dolorosa” difficult to appreciate. 

However, the confusion her outfit may evoke is nothing compared to the visual appeal her look simultaneously delivers. The dress itself was a perfect fit, establishing an ethereal silhouette that — paired with the hood and the flowy train — created an exciting air of mystery. Her jewelry didn’t distract too much from the outfit itself, but still managed to catch spectators’ eyes as she made her way down the red carpet. While Yai struggled to send a strong message with her outfit, it is impossible to deny that her look was still eye-catching and glamorous overall.

RATING: 4/5

BHAVITHA MANDAVA

On Dec. 2, 2025, rising model BhavitHa Mandava made fashion history as the first Indian model to open a Chanel show during Chanel’s Métiers d’Art show. To honor this, Mandava’s look at the Met Gala this year was inspired by the outfit she wore at that day, a beige quarterzip and jeans, only elevated to be more couture. At the Gala, Mandava’s quarter zip was sheer and her jeans an illusion, in reality made from muslin silk with a denim print that required 250 hours to create. 

While the outfit served as a cute callback to her iconic look from December, it disappointed painfully in a variety of aspects. For one, it was simply too simple. Although the outfit’s reference point made sense, it unfortunately had zero connection to the Met Gala theme, which was meant to be rooted in art. Furthermore, wearing fake-jeans and a blouse to one of the most extravagant fashion events of the year is a huge faux-pas. The simplicity of her outfit feels less like couture and more like a day at the office, and feels a little ridiculous juxtaposed with the 250 hours put into the outfit: when considering the amount of work put into an unnoticeable payoff, at an event largely about visual appreciation, there really is no point in going through the trouble. 

Additionally, for Indian audiences excited to see Mandava take on the Met Gala, it was a little disheartening that Chanel’s first Indian model to open a runway show went for a completely western look, especially considering the Met Gala’s history with white celebrities appropriating Indian fashion. Similar to Emma Chamberlain being allowed to wear parts of the Cartier Patiala necklace at the Gala in 2022 while singer Diljit Dosanjh was denied the chance to wear it in 2025 — it’s angering that Indian celebrities aren’t allowed to celebrate their culture at this event, especially when we turn a blind eye to white celebrities consistently appropriating it.

RATING: 1/5

HEIDI KLUM

Inspired by classical works such as “Veiled Christ” by Giuseppe Samartino and “Veiled Vestal” by Rafaele Monti, no one executed their Met Gala look better than model, actress and television host Heidi Klum. In a custom outfit by make-up artist Mike Marino, Klum utilized materials such as spandex to create a realistic marble effect in the draping of her Grecian statue look. While extravagant and committed to the theme, it is unsurprising that Klum executed so well, seeing as she is known for dramatic looks and innovative fashion choices — especially her creative Halloween outfits.

The inspiration and execution of Klum’s outfit align spectacularly well, as the materials function to make her look as if she were authentically marble. This sets Klum aside from most celebrities, as she took a step further to become art instead of just representing it. Additionally, from her hair to her makeup to the outfit itself, Klum leaves no doubt that she is absolutely committed to the bit which is part of the reason it succeeds so well — without the right amount of motivation, Klum’s execution would have faltered and eventually failed.

If there were to be one downside to this look, it would be that — much like many of Klum’s previous looks — the shock factor upon first glance is incredibly high, as Klum’s realism can come off as quite frightening. However, despite the initially jarring nature of this look, Klum did not disappoint with another mind-blowing look at the 2026 Met Gala. Adventurous and authentic, Klum’s outfit ensures that she is yet to let up when it comes to innovative fashion. 

RATING: 4.5/5

EMMA CHAMBERLAIN

Podcaster and internet personality Emma Chamberlain is typically known for her entertaining and engaging interviews with celebrities. However, in this year’s Met Gala, she cemented her legacy with a stunning gown, embellished with a medley of colorful acrylic paints inspired by the famous “Starry Night” by Vincent Van Gogh and her dad’s watercolor and oil paintings. 

Chamberlain’s gown embodied the theme, “Fashion is Art,” as a piece that was completely hand painted using 30 different base colors by artist Anna Deller-Yee. The 40 hours Deller-Yee put into the dress certainly paid off, with the top of the dress subtly decorated with light paints before swirling into a pool of dynamic dark blues, oranges and purple at the train of the gown. Chamberlain’s make-up further contributed to her look, with a dramatic purple eyeshadow that perfectly matched the vibe of the bottom of the gown and enhanced her intentional use of colors and draping.

While the bottom of the gown clearly stole the show, Chamberlain’s styling of the neckline was lackluster. It’s clear that with the hand-painted effort, Chamberlain and her designers were aiming to create the illusion of painting directly on her body. However, this effect was ruined by the use of a turtleneck design, which made the supposedly invisible base fabric painfully obvious and hindered Chamberlain’s look from truly reaching its vision. 

While the gown’s design fell short in some places, Chamberlain’s outfit served as a stand-out look for this year’s Met Gala. With gorgeous draping and the amalgamation of colors, Chamberlain effectively executed this year’s theme. By tying in what art means to her, using inspiration from revered art pieces and maintaining her own persona with an often dramatic, sense of style, Chamberlain served with a look to remember.

RATING: 4.5/5

SABRINA CARPENTER

Inspired by her namesake 1954 film, “Sabrina,” singer-songwriter Sabrina Carpenter walked the carpets of the 2026 Met Gala in a custom Dior gown with film strips of the movie.

Carpenter’s gown shined through her unique take on the theme, choosing cinema as the basis of her inspiration rather than traditional paint-based art by using authentic, rhinestone-lined film strips. Additionally, Carpenter’s look was thoroughly carried by the beautiful draping of the tulle incorporated with the film strips and delicate jewelry, especially with the back of the dress culminating in an intricate bow structure and train. The extravagant structural components of the dress were further accentuated by Carpenter’s skillful selection of jewelry, especially with a roaring 20’s-esque headpiece that perfectly played into the “Sabrina” inspiration.  

While the concrete design of the gown was beautifully thought out, Carpenter’s look lacked color, an aspect of art that almost defines the genre. While the black-and-white film strip worked effectively for the look, Carpenter’s make-up fell short, looking almost identical to her everyday make-up. As a result, Carpenter was forced to rely too heavily on the draping of the dress, lacking creativity with colors and the exploration of other dimensions of art. 

RATING: 4/5

A$AP ROCKY

Hip-hop artist, fashion designer and Rihanna’s prop A$AP Rocky is likely the only man invited to the Met Gala that consistently does not dress up in a boring, two-piece, black-and-white suit — and for that, all accolades goes to him. However, for the 2026 Met Gala, A$AP Rocky’s attempt at going down in fashion history faltered and drowned. 

Rocky donned a custom Chanel wool cape with basic dress pants and a shirt paired underneath. The wool cape was an awkward vibrant but light pink, which came off as tacky and boring when compounded by the design reminiscent of an untailored bathrobe. Nothing about Rocky’s actual outfit aligned with the theme — however, he attempted to do so through his creative jewelry. Rocky’s unique and intricate jewelry was self designed by his label, PAVĒ NITEŌ, in collaboration with historic Venetian jewelry house Maison Codognato, successfully combining Rocky’s hip-hop influences and traditional Catholic Vatican art. However, his robe covered most of the jewelry, highlighting all the wrong things about his look. 

Overall, Rocky had ambitious intentions coming into this year’s gala — with strong creativity behind his jewelry, he laid the foundation for a groundbreaking Met Gala look. However, his actual outfit drowned out any remnants of successful execution by using a tacky, dreadful pink robe that covers any hope he had of success. 

RATING: 2.5/5

Like every other year, this year’s Met Gala was filled with highs and lows: with some celebrities successfully balancing their interpretation of the assigned theme and creating an aesthetically pleasing outfit, while others flailed their way through the red carpet. However, it seemed that this year, more celebrities completely missed the mark, with half-baked attempts at simply mimicking famous art pieces or not even relating to art at all. This can be attributed to the backlash faced by the Met Gala for being funded by billionaire and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, who has notoriously been under fire for his immense wealth and poor labor conditions. As many celebrities and designers have chosen to boycott the Gala this year, a series of creative minds and visionaries have also been notably missed — a strong source of reasoning as to why the Met Gala fell short. When looking at the ambitious outfits, overlapping visions and billionaire funding, perhaps the Met Gala isn’t missing anything, but rather doing to much.

OVERALL RATING: 3/5