Met Gala over the years: best looks of the decade
- Fashion Featured
Schenelle Dsouza
- 8 minutes read
Schenelle Dsouza
With the Met Gala 2022, only less than a week away, netizens around the world cannot help but wonder what this year’s fashion event will bring. The theme “In America: An Anthology of Fashion” stands to celebrate the “anonymous and unsung heroes of US design.
Deemed fashion’s biggest event of the year, the Met Gala encourages designers to bring out their best and most innovative creations. Over the years, well most of them at least, celebrities have donned some of the most iconic, memorable and winning outfits. Take a look at some of the winning looks from each year of the celebrated Met Gala.
2021 – In America: A Lexicon of Fashion, Emily Blunt
The 2021 Met Gala, while fashionable was hardly awe-inspiring, with only a few leaving us really excited. Case in point Emily Blunt’s custom Miu Miu gown. The sparkling design was inspired by American actress Hedy Lamarr’s look in the 1941 film ‘Ziegfeld Girl.’ A corseted see-through nude tulle column dress, the dress was adorned with fringe, crystals and stars, and paired with a white cape. The look was paired with a wrapped diamond bracelet, diamond-shaped dangly earrings, and a custom star and pearl-encrusted headpiece.
2019 – Camp: Notes on Fashion, Cardi B
One of the few attendees to take the over the top, Camp theme seriously, Cardi B stunned the world with the massive quilted ensemble at the 2019 Met Gala. A custom oxblood design by Thom Browne, the gown was enhanced with elements like 30,000 burned and dyed coque feathers, a custom bodice, a heart-shaped cut-out on the backside, 44-carat ruby nipples and a bugle-bead headpiece made in collaboration with Stephen Jones.
2018 – Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination, Rihanna
A rightful queen of the red carpet, Rihanna made an appearance at the 2018 Met Gala dressed as the Pope! Elaborate and stunning, the singer wore a strapless Maison Margiela gown designed by John Galliano in Paris. The ensemble came with a matching coat, papal tiara and purse, all encrusted with hundreds of pearls and jewels, which took almost 250 hours to complete. The look was brought together with a bejewelled crucifix necklace, diamond hoops and a simple pearl anklet. The stunning Catholicism-inspired look gave Rihanna the winning title at the Met Gala for the third time.
2017 – Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garçons: Art of the In-Between, Rihanna
Another red carpet win for Rihanna was at the 2017 Met Gala honouring Japanese fashion label Comme des Garçons. Straight off the label’s 2016 fall collection, the elaborate, floral sculpted dress was described by the designer Rei Kawakubo as something inspired by “18th-century punks”. The sculpted ensemble was made with three-dimensional petals, cut from jacquard florals with an asymmetric hemline and cut-outs along with the design. Going red all the way through, Rihanna opted for bright reddish makeup, and red thigh-high sandals by Dsquared2.
2016 – Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology, Nicole Kidman
The 2016 Met Gala was all sparkle and shine, each looking brighter than the other. One of the looks that stood out, however, was that of Nicole Kidman. Elaborate elegance is perhaps the best way to describe this stunning ensemble designer by Alexander McQueen. A celestial theme laid against a black backdrop, this gown resembled the perfect night sky. Featuring a cut-out bodice, the gown was accompanied by a cape, both of which were intricately beaded with silver embellishments.
2015 – China: Through the Looking Glass, Rihanna
Despite becoming a meme for generations, Rihanna’s 2015 Met Gala look will always be iconic. Designed by Chinese couturier Guo Pei, the cape style ensemble featured a luxuriously long fur-trimmed train, which rendered the outfit a whopping 25kgs. The cape was heavily embroidered with real gold thread and embellished with crystals adding to its regal look. Rihanna kept the look as it is, pairing it with a statement headpiece with diamonds and rubies, a string gold choker and diamond studs.
2013 – Punk: Chaos to Couture, Beyoncé
A fiery ensemble, Beyonce’s 2013 punk Met Gala outfit was a stunner of all sorts. The singer, who was the honorary chair at the Met Gala that year, braced the red carpet in a stunning Givenchy Haute Couture by Riccardo Tisci. The custom-designed black outfit featured a bold high slit and was embroidered with orange flame cutouts across the hem and the dramatic train. She paired the look with matching thigh-high boots, a python leather corset, and a python belt, with black elbow-length gloves only adding to the drama!
2012 – Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations, Scarlett Johansson
