The 2026 Met Gala, held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, is set for tonight with the theme "Costume Art" and the dress code "Fashion is Art." The event, which takes place annually on the first Monday in May, serves as a high-profile fundraiser for the Costume Institute and a fashion spectacle. Co-chairs include Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, and Anna Wintour. The theme is tied to the Met's upcoming exhibition of the same name, which will debut the Costume Institute's first permanent galleries—the Condé M. Nast Galleries—and explore "the centrality of the dressed body" by pairing garments with art spanning 5,000 years.
This year's Met Gala matters because it marks a significant institutional milestone: the opening of the Costume Institute's first permanent galleries, a transformative expansion that curator Andrew Bolton says gives fashion a central location within an art museum. The open-ended dress code encourages guests to treat clothing as artistic expression, likely generating bold, conversation-starting looks from celebrities like Rihanna and Kim Kardashian. The event also underscores the ongoing cultural dialogue between fashion and art, reinforcing the Met Gala's role as a barometer of contemporary style and a major fundraiser for the museum.