Met Gala: 'Costume Art' Theme

The 2026 Met Gala is set for Monday, May 4, and the museum behind it is already building the “Costume Art” exhibition in New York. (metmuseum.org) The Metropolitan Museum of Art said the gala will be co-chaired by Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, and Anna Wintour. The museum also set the dress code as “Fashion is Art.” (metmuseum.org) Associated Press photos taken Tuesday, April 14, showed mannequins being staged for the “Costume Art” exhibit, a sign that physical installation work is underway weeks before the gala. (alamy.com) “Costume Art” is the Costume Institute’s spring 2026 exhibition, and it opens to the public on May 10, six days after the fundraiser. The Met said the show will run through January 10, 2027. (metmuseum.org) The exhibition pairs garments with artworks from across the museum to examine what the Met calls the “dressed body” — how clothing and the human form are represented together in art. The museum said the show focuses primarily on Western art from prehistory to the present. (metmuseum.org) The Met said the show will include nearly 400 objects and will inaugurate the museum’s nearly 12,000-square-foot Condé M. Nast Galleries next to the Great Hall. Those new galleries are meant to house the Costume Institute’s annual spring show and other exhibitions on fashion and art. (metmuseum.org) The gala is not just a red-carpet event. The Met said it is the Costume Institute’s primary annual source of funding for exhibitions, publications, acquisitions, and operations, with proceeds also supporting other museum activities. (metmuseum.org) This year’s host committee includes Sabrina Carpenter, Doja Cat, Gwendoline Christie, Alex Consani, Misty Copeland, Elizabeth Debicki, Lena Dunham, Lisa, Sam Smith, Teyana Taylor, A’ja Wilson, and Yseult, among others. Anthony Vaccarello and Zoë Kravitz are listed as co-chairs of that committee. (metmuseum.org) The next date on the calendar is May 4, when guests climb the Met steps before the exhibition opens inside the museum on May 10. By mid-April, the mannequins were already in place. (metmuseum.org) (alamy.com)