Claire Boucher, more commonly known as the experimental musician Grimes, arrived at the Met Gala in Iris van Herpen’s custom “Bene Gesserit” gown, which took more than 900 hours of construction. Each metallic swoosh and inch of fabric was first hand-cast from liquid silicone before being meticulously placed in between 26 layers of hand-sewn and dyed silk. The futuristic and other-worldly feeling radiating off of this outfit is meant to reference the 1965 science-fiction novel by Frank Herbert, Dune, which is currently being transformed into a movie adaptation. Collaborating with the staff on the Dune production, Grimes also wore the original metallic mask from the film as well as accompanying the look with a real metallic sword that was inspired by a western European sword from around the 1400s. Lastly, Grimes completed the look with metal elven ears, hand-crafted by Lillian Shalom.
On September 13, celebrities and internet personalities alike joined together for the 2021 Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Hosted by big personalities such as Timothée Chalamet, Billie Eilish, Amanda Gorman, and Naomi Osaka, the Met Gala focused on highlighting all aspects of American fashion. The gala, intended as a fundraiser for the museum, follows the theme of “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion,” which the Met Gala explains, “Establishes a modern vocabulary of American fashion based on its expressive qualities.” With the Met Gala raising a new record of 17 million dollars total, the museum will use this money as its budget for the rest of the year. Because the theme of the Met Gala is broken into two parts, the next Met Gala will continue the patriotic spirit in 2022 with the theme “In America: An Anthology of Fashion.” The 2022 Met Gala, which will begin on May 5, plans to commence in the rooms of the American Wing in the museum, and guests will design their outfits based on the theme of the complex histories within each room.
Rihanna and A$AP Rocky took to the red carpet in comfort. Although Rihanna represented Balenciaga in this all-black dress designed by Demna Gvasalia, A$AP Rocky’s outfit designed by Eli Russell Linnetz really stood out between the two. The quilt from the ERL spring collection worn by A$AP Rocky was actually recognized by a viewer, who identifies herself as Sarah, as their great-grandmother’s quilt that had been donated to a thrift store a while ago. After learning that the designer had found the quilt somewhere in a thrift shop in Southern California, the viewer scrambled to find an old image of the quilt. Photo evidence posted by the individual shows an identical quilt lying on the surface of a bed, and Sarah recalled, “I realized instantly that it had to be the same quilt.” Gvasalia later revealed that he had chosen the antique quilt to represent the, “Historical connection to the American experience.” Sarah is more than excited to have her great-grandmother’s quilt featured at the Met Gala. They donated the quilt with the hope that it would keep someone warm or would be used for charity, and Sarah was glad that these designers were able to take the quilt, “To the next level.” (Photo courtesy of John Shearer.)Supermodel, Iman, dazzled audiences with her golden outfit designed by Dolce & Gabbana and Harris Reed. Reed first found inspiration for this outfit when analyzing the golden age of America and its ballroom culture. With the 18th-century dress cages in mind, Reed explained how they wanted the outfit to, “Take up space in a way that says, ‘I deserve to be here, and I own it.’” By finishing off the look with references to Frederic Fellini’s historical epics and Jean- Paul Gaultier, the idea for the visually striking outfit began to develop. Impressively, the dress was crafted in only 29 days, taking over 400 hours to complete. As the designer, Reed was just honored to collaborate with Dolce & Gabbana and push the fashion limits at the Met Gala in order to provide Iman with an unforgettable outfit. Reed believes that the United States is a country where, “Anything is possible,” and he wanted to prove that in his work while also staying true to himself. (Photo courtesy of Mike Coppola.)Although the 2021 Met Gala was Lil Nas X’s first time attending, the musician was sure to make an entrance with the help of Donatella Versace. Lil Nas first entered the event in a golden, regal cape that flowed behind him on the red carpet. Once the cape was unveiled, Lil Nas posed in a golden suit of armor encasing his entire body underneath. Lastly, the golden plates were disassembled to reveal his final outfit of the night: a golden and ornately beaded bodysuit. Being very reminiscent of when Lady Gaga arrived at the Met Gala wearing four outfits, fans were excited to see how Lil Nas put his own personal spin on the infamous entrance. While audiences would expect no less from Lil Nas to arrive at the Met Gala wearing three outfits, the transformation contributed to an even greater message about Lil Nas and his rapid rise into popularity within the past few years. (Photo courtesy of John Shearer.)Dan Levy, a cast member of the show Schitt’s Creek, walked the red carpet with a global-themed outfit, designed by JW Anderson and Loewe. This outfit, while not only being visually striking by itself, held a much more significant meaning to Levy, encouraging the universality of love. In an Instagram post, Levy explained how the image depicted on his shirt originated from a prejudiced cartoon that he had found on the internet. By making it the centerpiece of his outfit, Levy was able to fight against the damaging stigma for the community. Wanting to put an end to damaging prejudices through his work in comedy, Levy’s outfit expressed that same message, “Celebrating the resilience, the love, and the joy of the community while honoring a crucial American voice that was taken from us too soon.” While Levy admitted this outfit was far out of his comfort zone, he was ecstatic to have the opportunity to share this message at one of the fashion world’s biggest events of the year. (Photo courtesy of Theo Wargo.)While the look may seem simple, Timothée Chalamet arrived at the 2021 Met Gala wearing the all-white outfit by French fashion designer, Haider Ackerman. Being very familiar with Ackerman’s work, Chalamet chose to wear a satin tuxedo jacket contrasted with casual white sweatpants and classic white Converse high-top shoes. Ackerman’s design was inspired by the subtle clash between styles that he observes in the United States. “I wanted to create something inspired by this energy—a fusion of street style and sleek tailoring, to create a more dynamic, deliberate silhouette.” It was a realistic representation of the clothes one would see walking down the streets of New York City. Furthermore, he chose the color white in order to symbolize hopes for a calm and peaceful event. To top it off, Chalamet accessorized his outfit with jewelry from Cartier. (Photo courtesy of Theo Wargo.)
Alexandra Caballero is the Copy-Editor of Lake Highland Preparatory School’s Upper School newspaper Twice-Told Tale. Joining the staff in 2020, Caballero...
