By Rebecca Ceccatelli. Cover image by Armando Aureliano Sauzullo.
Met Gala 2024, here we go!
Much like the famous Hunger Games parade in Suzanne Collins’ series, another highly anticipated and scrutinised social event is about to take place. As always, we’re geared up with notebooks, ready to judge the outfits of celebrities on the most famous red carpet.
Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion is the theme for the 2024 Costume Institute exhibition, open from May 10 to September 2, along with the accompanying Met Ball.
Back at the Met Gala once more, we’re all hyped and waiting for the next Fashion Oscars, with our streaming channels all set to go. Our obsession with this event seems to be never-ending, at least for now! We are here to provide you with all the necessary material to get ready for this year’s edition. Are you excited?
Come and MET the Gala!
“The first Monday in May”… Doesn’t this sentence trigger explosive enthusiasm in our stomach just by mentioning it? The Met Gala 2024 will take place on May 6.
Well, if this happens to you too, you’re probably part of that audience that eagerly awaits the unveiling of the fashion world’s best-kept secrets.
Few things have prevented the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York from celebrating its most famous event since 1948 to the present day. Consider that this has happened only twice. What a cult!
Celebrating the power of fashion, the Costume Institute Gala was initially conceived as the vernissage of the annual exhibition hosted in the MET with a specific theme.
But when the most influential figures in social circles started to take part in the event, the hallway leading to the museum turned into a glamorous runway, and the event itself became a celebration of fashion. It also became a welcoming ceremony for new guests and ambassadors embraced by the most famous high-fashion houses.
If you were ever invited, you better know that…
However, what we socialites see of the Met Gala is just an introduction to what it really is.
The famous walk on the carpeted stairs of the museum is followed by a dinner with a live music performance and a nice set of rules to follow. However, the specifics of the event are not well-known, and all we have are whispers in the hallways that leaked information over the years.
Inside, using phones is strictly prohibited – although someone has accidentally revealed a few mirror selfies in the famous restrooms. Additionally, the dinner plates are controlled, with no traces of onions or garlic in the meals. After all, who would want to have bad breath at an event where socialising is mandatory?
If there’s one thing you can be sure of, it’s that at the Met Gala 2024, you’ll never be assigned a seat next to someone you know. The rule of the evening is to connect with people you wouldn’t have even imagined exchanging words with.
Besides that, even though it is common knowledge that many celebrities change their outfits after walking the red carpet at the Met Gala, sometimes for practical reasons (think of Jared Leto’s Choupette costume of last year). Some rules have even been established to preserve the dresses that enter the museum during that night. For instance, Anna Wintour has banned red wine from being served at the tables of the stars. Despite the restriction, people still find ways to enjoy a drink and ease the tension of the most important socialite event of the year. It can be a little stressful, but if Anna invited you, you wouldn’t want to miss out!
Out of the archive: reawakening the Sleeping Beauties
While many things are kept under the boule of confidentiality, one thing has been revealed.
On May 6, 2024, the institution will open its doors to hundreds of stars from the world of fashion, cinema, music and business for the opening of the new annual exhibition curated by Andrew Bolton, Curator in Charge of The Costume Institute. This time, the event has been titled “Sleeping Beauty: Reawakening Fashion”. Based on the limited press releases, the exhibition will celebrate all the delicate and impalpable creations that are part of the museum’s collection but are too fragile to be worn or even displayed on a mannequin.
A series of 250 garments and accessories from four centuries will be on display, visually connected through nature, which also serves as a metaphor for the fleeting nature of fashion.
The show will showcase the artistic sensory qualities of these masterworks through various interactive experiences. Visitors will be invited to smell the scents of historical hats with floral motifs, feel the walls of galleries embossed with the embroideries of selected garments, and witness the restrictive nature of the “hobble skirt” worn by women in the early 20th century through the Pepper’s ghost illusion technique.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art has published a selection of exhibits from the Costume Institute, such as the butterfly dress from Alexander McQueen’s Spring/Summer 2011 worn by Effie Trinket’s in Hunger Games: Catching Fire, which went viral on social media. Other historical pieces on display include the Venus ball gown and Juno ball gown by Dior from 1949, as well as Charles Frederick Worth’s Ballgown.
The Met Gala theme for 2024. Scratching heads in confusion?
Starting from May 10, anyone who wishes to see these garments will be able to access them in NY. However, the outfits for the opening night at the Met Gala will only be visible through the reports of photographers and journalists. Like every year, the audience has already begun to form an idea of the themes that the most famous fashion houses have used to craft stunning outfits for themselves and their proteges to shine on the city’s most famous carpet.
Meanwhile, the Sleeping Beauties of the archives will be showcased upstairs, and the guests who attend the vernissage have been given a dress code to follow. Have you ever heard of J.G. Ballard’s tale “The Garden of Time” from 1962? If not, don’t worry; you’re not the only one, even among the famous attendees.
This literary inspiration brings to mind the essence of preserving time, just like the main character of the story, Count Axel, who is compelled to gather the flowers of time from his garden to restore a sense of peace that the progress of technology was threatening to take away.
The most obvious interpretation of the dress code would reference the idea of a garden, connecting to the world of plants and flowers. However, within the story, there are other hidden messages beyond a superficial reading, such as the fleeting nature of moments and our inability to control them. Perhaps some pieces from the archives could be borrowed and worn again – hopefully not repeating the Marylin Monroe dress incident with Kim Kardashian in 2022 – or maybe reproduced, giving a second life to those sleeping beauties.
Our predictions for the Met Gala 2024 include the possibility of a real flower meadow on the carpet, perhaps with symbolic interpretations of the story, which may lead to parallels with the three themes of the exhibition – Earth, Sea, and Sky. We wouldn’t be surprised if a bit of healthy camp interpretations emerged, with cloud dresses or wooden outfits. Who knows.
The anticipation and excitement that builds around the event year after year probably stems from the hype of its unattainability and exclusivity. However, healthy competition within the fashion industry can be a positive force and eccentric personalities like Lady Gaga or Lil Nas X can push boundaries and keep us glued to our devices, wanting to know more and more.
We may be among the ones who are influenced by this hype, but after reading this guide, you too may find yourself “busy” on May 6 this year…
