American actress Blake Lively, co-chair of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Met) gala, on May 2, 2022 in New York (AFP / ANGELA WEISS)
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It’s the most selective climb of the steps on the planet: the Metropolitan Museum of Art gala in New York on Monday evening paraded hundreds of international stars, in extravagant outfits, for an annual philanthropic evening after two editions upset by the pandemic.
The “Met Gala 2022”, in the heart of Manhattan, resulted in a flood of images of stars responding to this year’s dress code, “Gilded Glamour”, which refers to the “Gilded Age”, the golden age late 19th century American.
They followed one another in strapless dresses, tuxedos, ultra chic, hyper glamorous, sparkling, implausible or even carrying political messages, on the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Met).
The list of 400 stars from fashion, music, film, social media, politics or business — mostly American — was kept secret until the last moment.
We saw Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallion, Lenny Kravitz, Ariana DeBose, Sarah Jessica Parker, Gigi and Bella Hadid and Stromae who told AFP to find it “weird” to be there but that he felt “honored”, he the “little Belgian”.
Elon Musk and his mother Maye Musk arrive at the Met Gala on May 2, 2022 in New York (AFP / ANGELA WEISS)
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The richest man in the world, the whimsical Elon Musk, raised his arms in front of the crowd.
In the process of buying Twitter, he promised on the red carpet to make it the “most inclusive social network possible”.
Hillary Clinton hailed the “spirit of America” radiating at the gala. Followed by actresses Glenn Close, Sigourney Weaver and Jessica Chastain.
– $35,000 entry –
First arrivals, the youtuber Emma Chamberlain appeared in a sublime Louis Vuitton dress and the high priestess of the event, the all-powerful editor-in-chief of Vogue Anna Wintour, in a Chanel ensemble.
Vogue magazine editor-in-chief Anna Wintour at the Met Gala on May 2, 2022 in New York ( AFP / ANGELA WEISS )
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Even invited, the ticket cost 35,000 dollars for a place at the gala dinner, 200,000 to 300,000 dollars the table paid by a patron, according to unofficial figures for 2021. That is an estimated total of more than 16 million dollars.
For the 2021 edition, moved from May to September due to the pandemic – after a total cancellation in 2020 – the show was provided by Billie Eilish, transformed into Marilyn Monroe with platinum blonde hair. Wiser this year, she wore a cream and green Gucci set.
– “End of guns” –
The gala is also the occasion for a political message: the mayor of New York Eric Adams landed with a jacket that carried his campaign slogan on his back demanding “an end to gun violence” in a bruised city by crime.
New York Mayor Eric Adams wears a jacket with the slogan “end gun violence” at the Met Gala on May 2, 2022 in New York City (AFP/ANGELA WEISS)
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In the pure American philanthropic tradition, the evening, which takes place on the first Monday of May, is intended to finance the fashion department of the Met (The Costume Institute) and coincides with its major annual exhibition. It was presented Monday morning to the first lady of the United States, Jill Biden, who saw it as “a celebration of the designers and fashion who have shaped America’s true identity”.
Make way this year for an American “Anthology of Fashion”, a retrospective of the 19th and 20th centuries of a hundred garments revisited by directors and designers such as Sofia Coppola, Martin Scorsese or Tom Ford.
American actress Blake Lively and her husband, American-Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds arrive at the Met Gala on May 2, 2022 in New York ( AFP / ANGELA WEISS )
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The gala took place as journalists and editors from Vogue and other Condé Nast titles (GQ, Vanity Fair, Glamor etc.) launched a movement to create a union, which they recalled on the social networks with a cover pastiche of Vogue: “Met Gala 2022 the longest night of the workers”.
– Kardashian en Marilyn –
On the red carpet, there have been fewer eccentricities than in years past: in 2019, singer and actor Billy Porter appeared as a god of the sun, spreading golden wings and carried by men with muscular torsos. And no one has matched Lady Gaga and her striptease on the steps.
American reality TV star Kim Kardashian and her friend comedian Pete Davidson at the Met Gala on May 2, 2022 in New York (AFP / ANGELA WEISS)
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However, Kim Kardashian, who appeared all in black (including her face) last September, closed this mega show with a bang: hair tied back and platinum blonde, molded in a sparkling beige dress, a copy of the one worn by Marilyn Monroe during her famous song “Happy Birthday Mr President”, on the approach of the 60th anniversary of the death of the world icon.
Created in 1948, the Met Gala was for a long time reserved for the very high society of New York, but Anna Wintour, who took it over in 1995, transformed it into a “people” event adapted to the era of social networks.
This year, the title of honorary co-president was also offered to the boss of Instagram, Adam Mosseri, alongside Anna Wintour and stylist Tom Ford.
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