Here are the Best Looks From the Met Gala 2026 "Fashion is Art"

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The first Monday in May is known as “fashion’s biggest night out,” aka the Met Gala. This annual fete raises money for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute and marks the start of its exhibition. Opening May 10, 2026, is the Costume Art show, which uses the dressed body to examine garments from The Costume Institute. From the show concept came the theme of the 2026 Met Gala: “Fashion is Art.”

Vague enough to have broad interpretations, attendees expressed the theme in many ways. Some wore garments inspired by fine art. Actor Hunter Schafer, for instance, wore a dress modeled after Gustav Klimt’s painting titled Mäda Primavesi, while actor Chase Infiniti recalled a colorful version of Venus de Milo by wearing a dress adorned with more than 1 million sequins. But of the attendees who leaned into the fine art of it all, no one was more committed than model and Project Runway host Heidi Klum. She came to the red carpet dressed like a marble statue you’d see inside the Greek and Roman wing of the museum. Inspired by the veiled statues of the 1800s, particularly Veiled Vestal by Rafaelle Monti, it’s amazing to see how much her ensemble looked like stone despite being made of fabric and foam.

Other attendees encapsulated “Fashion is Art” with sculptural elements and even a bit of performance. Madonna donned a fascinator that doubled as a ship, sails and all. The headpiece had drapey fabric attached, which trailed down her back into a long train. She stood out even among the most daring looks, as did Eileen Gu. The Olympian wore a whimsical dress by designer Iris Van Herpen that was covered in tiny bauble bubbles and even blew real bubbles as she posed for photos and videos.

This year’s Met Gala was not without its controversy. In November 2025, former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and his wife, Lauren Sánchez Bezos, were named lead sponsors of the 2026 Met Gala. They paid $10 million to do so, and were accused of trying to “buy their way into high society.” There were calls to boycott the event. And while 2026 still saw plenty of celebrities at the Met Gala, there were a number of A-listers that decided against it this year, taking a stand against Bezos and what billionaires like him stand for. There was also one person in particular who broke a long-standing tradition of attending: New York City’s mayor. Mayor Zohran Mamdani skipped this year’s event, being the first NYC mayor since 2002 to do so.

Scroll down to see some of the best looks from the 2026 Met Gala.

The 2026 Met Gala had the theme “Fashion is Art.” Here’s how attendees interpreted it in clever and often gorgeous ways.

Sabrina Carpenter

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Met Gala 2026: How Attendees Interpreted the “Fashion Is Art” Theme on the Red Carpet

The 2026 Met Gala had the theme “Fashion is Art.” Here’s how attendees interpreted it in clever and often gorgeous ways.

Sabrina Carpenter

Eileen Gu

Heidi Klum

Rihanna and A$AP Rocky

Doechii

Kim Kardashian

Blake Lively

Madonna

Bad Bunny

María Zardoya (of The Marias)

Blue Ivy, Jay-Z, and Beyonce

Hudson Williams

Connor Storrie

Emma Chamberlain

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Sarah Paulson

Katy Perry

Janelle Monáe

Alysa Liu

Ayo Edebiri

Hunter Schafer

Naomi Osaka

Serena Williams

Chase Infiniti

Teyana Taylor

Colman Domingo

Lena Dunham

Miles Chamley-Watson

Kylie Jenner

Anne Hathaway

Odessa A’zion

Cardi B

SZA

Rachel Sennott

Kendall Jenner

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