Written by LEANNE ITALIE – Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) – Blake Lively smiled in front of the cameras in a grand Versace dress with her husband Ryan Reynolds in velvet as Met Gala returned on the first Monday in May after years of pandemic upheaval with a celebration of American design and a theme of gilded glamor.
The actress, one of the hosts of the evening, wore bronze and rose gold, which turned into a shimmering layer of blue when pulled a large bow. Lively’s view drew inspiration from both the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building, and the blue ceiling of Central Station.
“Instead of looking for fashion to influence the dress, I looked at New York architecture,” Lively said.
Some of the early pedestrians interpreted the theme of the period in black or white. Others walked with royal purples and glittering gold and silver.
“Black and white are the colors of the evening,” said Holly Katz, stylist and host of the Fashion Crimes podcast.
Jordan Roth, a theater producer, showed his own expression by removing a black, eggshell-like suit with pants. Janelle Monae proposed a royal wave in a black and white helmet and a form-fitting dress with a hat.
“Strange. I am proud to be an American. I am proud to wear Ralph Lauren. It’s gilded glamor from the future, ”Monae told the Associated Press.
The cast of “Elvis” Base Luhrmann has joined forces in brilliant suits, capes and dresses from Prada. Movie star Austin Butler wore a cropped suit and a silk scarf with a gemstone brooch. Luhrmann said his film is ultimately about America.
Live broadcast of Vogue co-host Vanessa Hudgens climbed the steps of the Metropolitan Museum in a fuzzy Victorian black lace dress with a long train. She was joined by La La Anthony, her fellow Vogue presenter, who wore a deep red image with carved shoulders from LaQuan Smith.
“I’m almost naked,” Hudgens joked.
Anthony said, “These stairs are scary.”
And if the return of the Met Gala seems like one of those moments already, it is.
It was just under eight months since the last galaan an annual fundraiser that collects eight-figure amounts for the Costume Institute Meta. About 600 lyceum students from fashion, sports, music, cinema, television, technology and more were invited to the pandemic. This year and last year the numbers were closer to 400. The 2020 Gala was canceled.
More than $ 16.4 million was raised last year. The stellar event is the main budgetary breadwinner of the institute.
This year’s gala coincides with opening of the second part of the exposition, which consists of two parts on Costume Institute focused on American fashion and style. The evening dress code is gilded glamor and a white tie, a la gilded age, that turbulent period between the Civil War and the beginning of the 20th century, known for its robber barons, drama and grandeur.
This year’s walk up the Grand Stairway, lined with red roses, brings the celebration back to its legendary location on the first Monday in May, when the official live broadcast is on the Vogue website.
Anna Wintour of Vogue, who has run the gala mission since 1995, wore Chanel feathers and a tiara with gems that have been in her family since 1910. She continues to be one of the honorary co-chairs of the evening along with designer Tom Ford and Adam Moseri of Instagram. The other official co-chairs for 2022 are Regina King and Lynn-Manuel Miranda.
The cost of a seat at last year’s Met Gala started at $ 35,000, although some attend for free. Sometimes celebrities are accompanied (and their tabs are paid) by designers who dress them, or other companies that invite them. The emphasis on inclusiveness in fashion this year can be celebrated and include more unsung designer characters than usual.
The event is the invention of the late Eleanor Lambert, a fashion publicist as powerful as Wintour in his day. In 1948, she had to come up with a way to pay for the newly created Costume Institute, the only department in Meta to raise its own funds.
While many of Wintour’s carefully maintained guest list follow a dress code, others go their own way. Interpretation is everything. Think Rihanna in a papal hat, Billy Porter as the sun god worn on a stretcher by shirtless people and Lady Gaga removes the layers when the fashion world has stopped to watch.
Associated Press writers Nardas Haile and John Carucci of New York City contributed to this story.
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