The Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute (Met) Gala, is an annual event held in New York City to fundraise for the museum’s Costume Institute. Famously, this event is the most glamorous and exclusive fashion event in the world.
The event is organized by Vogue, and overseen by Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour. Its main purpose is to raise money and celebrate the opening of the fashion exhibit. Traditionally, the event is held on the first Monday of May, this year it was held on May 5 2025.
Wintour has been overseeing the event since 1955. She initially rose to fame through several impactful editorial positions, such as: being a fashion assistant and editor for various magazines, including New York Magazine, and becoming the creative director of American Vogue in 1983.
The most important part of the Gala are the themes held each year that are tied to the costume institute’s exhibition, with guests expected to dress accordingly. Some past themes have been Camp: Notes on Fashion, Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty, Punk: Chaos to Costume and this year’s, Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.
This year’s theme focused on the significance of culture in the Black style, how it shapes Black identities and its place as a form of self expression in the Black community. It largely took inspiration from “Black Dandy,” “Dandyism has often been used by individuals to manipulate the relationship between clothing, identity, and power.” says curator Monica Miller, the Met YouTube channel.
Guests are a mix of celebrities from fashion, film, music, sports and art that can only come if they’re invited, along with the tickets costing tens of thousands of dollars. We only see the red carpet, but not much has been seen of the party itself, or the after party. The carpet is known for the bold, headline grabbing fashion statements.
This year, various celebrities returned to the carpet, and new up-and-coming celebrities graced the stage. Overall, the 2025 Met Gala has been seen as a success with diverse fashion choices. The most anticipated celebrities of the event include Zendaya, Rhianna, Pharell Williams, A$AP Rocky and Gigi Hadid.
The top three most voted Met Gala outfits of 2025 according to Vogue reader’s votes were Diljit Dosanjh, S.- Coups and Zendaya.
Dosanjh wore an outfit celebrating his Punjabi heritage, featuring a multi layered necklace inspired by the historic Patiala necklace crafted by Cartier for the Maharaja.
S.- Coups was seen wearing Hugo Boss and wore a modern representation of the traditional Korean hanbok. It seamlessly flowed with this year’s theme, with an asymmetrical grey blazer paired with matching pleated trousers and a long, flowy, black overcoat.
Lastly, Zendaya wore a custom suit designed by Pharell Williams for Louis Vuitton. It was an all-white look that consisted of a single breasted tuxedo jacket, a matching waistcoat, flared trousers and an oversized tie. She paired this outfit with a wide-brimmed white felt hat and a diamond brooch placed on her back collar seam.
