Met Gala uses 'Fashion is Art' dress code

The Metropolitan Museum of Art set “Fashion is Art” as the dress code for the 2026 Met Gala, the museum said in a February 23 announcement about its annual Costume Institute fundraiser. The gala took place on Monday, May 4, in New York, ahead of the opening of the Costume Institute’s spring exhibition, “Costume Art,” at The Met Fifth Avenue. (metmuseum.org) The museum said the dress code was designed to invite guests to express their own relationship to fashion as an embodied art form. The fundraiser supports the Costume Institute’s exhibitions, publications, acquisitions and operations, the museum said. ### How did the Met describe the dress code? The Met said on February 23 that the gala dress code would be “Fashion is Art.” In the same announcement, the museum said the theme invited guests to express “their own relationship to fashion as an embodied art form” and to celebrate depictions of the dressed body across art history. The museum tied that directive directly to “Costume Art,” the 2026 spring Costume Institute exhibition. The show examines what the museum called the “centrality of the dressed body,” pairing garments and artworks from across the Met’s collection. (metmuseum.org) ### What exhibition was the gala supporting? “Costume Art” opens on May 10, 2026, at The Met Fifth Avenue and runs through January 10, 2027, according to the museum. The exhibition pairs garments from the Costume Institute with works from other collecting areas to show the relationship between clothing and the body. (metmuseum.org) Nearly 400 objects are included in the exhibition, the Met said. The museum said the show focuses primarily on Western art from prehistory to the present and organizes pairings into thematic body types. (metmuseum.org) ### Where does “Costume Art” fit inside the museum? The Met said “Costume Art” inaugurates its new nearly 12,000-square-foot Condé M. Nast Galleries adjacent to the Great Hall. The museum said the space will host the Costume Institute’s annual spring show and, at times, exhibitions from other curatorial departments that explore the intersection of fashion and art. (metmuseum.org) A March 26 exhibition-program announcement from the museum again listed “Costume Art” as a spring highlight and said it would be the first exhibition in the new galleries. That release also placed the show within the Met’s broader spring 2026 program. (metmuseum.org) ### Who led the 2026 gala? Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams and Anna Wintour served as co-chairs of the May 4 benefit, the Met said. The museum also named Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos as honorary chairs for the evening. (metmuseum.org) Anthony Vaccarello and Zoë Kravitz co-chaired the gala host committee, according to the same announcement. The committee included Sabrina Carpenter, Doja Cat, Gwendoline Christie, Misty Copeland, Sam Smith, Teyana Taylor, A’ja Wilson and other invited participants. (metmuseum.org) ### What does the gala fund? The Met said the Met Gala takes place annually on the first Monday in May. The museum said proceeds from the event provide the Costume Institute with its primary source of annual funding for exhibitions, publications, acquisitions and operations. (metmuseum.org) The Costume Institute holds a collection of more than 33,000 costumes and accessories spanning five continents and seven centuries, according to the museum. That collection forms the basis for the department’s exhibitions and research program. (metmuseum.org) ### Where can readers follow what comes next? The Met said “Costume Art” is on view from May 10, 2026, through January 10, 2027, at The Met Fifth Avenue. The museum also hosts a Met Gala 2026 livestream page tied to the exhibition, where it says viewers can watch guests arrive for the Costume Institute Benefit celebrating “Costume Art.” (metmuseum.org 1) (metmuseum.org 2)