“Fashion is very much an art form not in spite of the body, but because of it,” says Andrew Bolton, OBE, curator in charge of the Costume Institute. And this year’s exhibition, “Costume Art,” seeks not just to address this tantalizingly complex issue, but to explore it in all its many facets. The central thesis is as simple as it is thrilling: pair existing artworks with corresponding garments or accessories and let your synapses fire. The very layout of the show—broken into sections that move from Biblical nudity to the au courant idea of body diversity to the ways in which we’ve long used clothes not merely to adorn but to subvert and distort the body—indicates just how richly drawn this subject is and why it’s mesmerized artists since time immemorial.
Sinéad Burke, CEO of Tilting the Lens, emphasizes how this exhibit highlights bodies that have traditionally been overlooked, and as someone with a physical disability, she is among those featured. Her body has been memorialized in the exhibition as a custom mannequin, alongside model and musician Aariana Rose Philip, transforming their presence into a lasting part of the narrative around representation, fashion, and identity.
Additionally, this exhibition will be the first in the costume department’s new home, the Conde M. Nast Galleries. Once relegated to a modest 4,500-square-foot space in the museum’s basement, the department will now take flight in a grand, 12,000-square-foot display room on the ground floor, just off the central Great Hall. It is, says Max Hollein, the museum’s director, a symbol of how important clothing has become to The Met’s mission in exploring the many facets of art in the modern age. “We collect paintings, sculptures, textiles, arms and armor, but especially all the fashion,” he says. “And we want to make sure that it’s understood that fashion is a fantastic form of art.”
Featuring testimonials from Misty Copeland, Alex Consani, Gwendoline Christie, Aimee Mullins, Sinéad Burke, Aariana Rose Philip and more.
Director: Nina Ljeti
Directors of Photography: Michael Lopez, Henry Gill
Editor: Evan Allan
Senior Producer: Bety Dereje
Producer: Rashida Josiah
Associate Producers: Anisa Kennar, Justine Ramirez, Lea Donenberg
Camera Operator: Chanthila Phaophanit
Assistant Camera: Kahdeem Prosper Jefferson, Gordan Wong
Gaffers: Billy Voermann, Mary Kalecinska
Swing: Alex Frischman
Audio: Mariya Chulichkova, Joanna Hunt
Set Designers: Ilana Portney, Dana Keren
Production Assistants: Quinton Johnson, Myles Haywood
Runners: Edie Chesters, Rachel Ademidun
Groomer for Andrew Bolton: Shin Arima
Makeup Artist for Sinéad Burke and Alex Consani: Ai Yokomizo
Hairstylist for Sinéad Burke and Alex Consani: Sonny Molina
Makeup Artist for Misty Copeland: Victor Henao
Hairstylist for Misty Copeland: Nai’vasha Grace
Makeup Artist for Aariana Philip: Meadow Soleil Cloud
Makeup Artist for Gwendoline Christie: Daniel Kolaric
Hairstylist for Gwendoline Christie: Joe Kelly
Hair & Makeup Artist for Aimee Mullins: Stèfan Jemeel
Production Coordinator: Tanía Jones
Production Manager: Kristen Helmick
Senior Production Manager: Venita Singh-Warner
Line Producer: Natasha Soto-Albors
Assistant Editors: Andy Morell, Fynn Lithgow
Senior Motion Graphics Designer: Samuel Fuller
Post Production Coordinator: Holly Frew
Supervising Editor: Kameron Key
Post Production Supervisor: Alexa Deutsch
Entertainment Director: Sergio Kletnoy
Global Talent Casting Directors: Ignacio Murillo, Morgan Senesi
Executive Producer: Rahel Gebreyes
Senior Director, Digital Video: Romy van den Broeke
Senior Director, Programming: Linda Gittleson
VP, Video Programming: Thespena Guatieri
Florist: London Blooming Haus
Photography By Paul Westlake
Images Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Special Thanks: The Metropolitan Museum of Art
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@muff1n.mp4
May 4, 2026 at 3:01 pm
I love the mirror-like faces on the mannequins!! You could look into the faces and basically see yourself in whatever outfit the mannequins are clothed in!!
And I feel like this year, the met will actually hit the mark!
@nori-n6m
May 4, 2026 at 3:03 pm
VOGUE< FASHIONCOSTUMES
@user-nr3lv6rz7n
May 4, 2026 at 3:04 pm
We re otherized n diversity was normalized. That’s cringe. Now u get to be in the main hall BUT so hey got to fight equity empathy diversity inclusion.
@bonniesnyder5425
May 4, 2026 at 3:09 pm
🩷🩵🩷🩵💃🏻🕺🏻👗👛
@SafaaaBentazroutez
May 4, 2026 at 3:12 pm
I support black and pink; they are wonderful in their purity. ❤ 2:35
@DERRICKBELL-zu3pd
May 4, 2026 at 3:18 pm
So,dope on so many levels.
@Univers_Queen
May 4, 2026 at 3:22 pm
حماااسي واااصل للسماااا خلاص متبقي وقت قليييل و اشوف جيسوووو 😖❤❤❤
@Univers_Queen
May 4, 2026 at 3:23 pm
متحمسسسسة لجيسووو هتطلع مززة بالميت جالا ❤❤❤❤
@Univers_Queen
May 4, 2026 at 3:23 pm
جميعنا متحمسون من أجل جيسو 😆😆😆❤❤❤❤❤❤
@Univers_Queen
May 4, 2026 at 3:24 pm
Jisoooooooo 😆😆❤❤🎀
@Univers_Queen
May 4, 2026 at 3:24 pm
كنتُ أتمنى جدا أن يحضروا Katseye 😢😔
@traceynovick8044
May 4, 2026 at 3:25 pm
I AM SO GLAD THAT I WATCHED THIS.
@Univers_Queen
May 4, 2026 at 3:26 pm
متحمسون للميت جالا ❌
متحمسون لبلاك بينك في الميت جالا✔️
❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
@Univers_Queen
May 4, 2026 at 3:28 pm
آمل أن تتم دعوة Katseye في الميت جالا القادم 🙂😢
@Dollgurl-f1s
May 4, 2026 at 3:29 pm
JENNIEEEEE❤❤❤
@Univers_Queen
May 4, 2026 at 3:29 pm
I’m sooo existed for Jisooo ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
@eedzss
May 4, 2026 at 3:29 pm
İZLEMEK İSTİYORUM AMA YARIN SINAVIM VAR OF
@La-di-da-e6l
May 4, 2026 at 3:31 pm
❤
@Univers_Queen
May 4, 2026 at 3:33 pm
I caaan’t wait mor time 😆😆😆
@melrosses
May 4, 2026 at 3:40 pm
5:52 it’s an armor ❤️🔥
@chemtrailchild
May 4, 2026 at 3:40 pm
Ok going to the MET tomorrow via rollerblades on the interstate
@yigeren55
May 4, 2026 at 3:46 pm
Mamdani!
@Jasmine_1-j
May 4, 2026 at 3:47 pm
looking forward to the met Gala launch
@ronnierideout
May 4, 2026 at 3:48 pm
What is Beyonce going to wear?😭😩
@Clover-cd9gi
May 4, 2026 at 3:51 pm
Rich gets richer, poor gets poorer