"Fashion is Art" Is the Dress Code of the 2026 Met Gala
Challenging the boundaries between couture and fine art.
Summary
- Vogue and The Metropolitan Museum of Art have confirmed “Fashion is Art” as the dress code for the 2026 Met Gala
- The code supports the spring exhibition Costume Art, which will inaugurate the museum’s new Condé Nast Galleries
- A power-house roster of co-chairs including Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, and Venus Williams will lead the May 4th event
Vogue has officially set the stage for the fashion industry’s most anticipated evening, announcing that the 2026 Met Gala will observe the dress code “Fashion is Art.” This year’s directive invites attendees to transcend traditional red carpet styling, encouraging looks that embody the conceptual and technical mastery usually reserved for gallery walls.
The dress code serves as a direct extension of the Costume Institute’s spring 2026 exhibition, titled “Costume Art.” Curated to dismantle the historical hierarchy between fine art and fashion, the retrospective will feature nearly 400 objects spanning five millennia. These pieces will be displayed within the museum’s newly named Condé Nast Galleries, emphasizing the symbiotic relationship between the garment and the artistic canon.
“What connects every curatorial department and what connects every single gallery in the museum is fashion, or the dressed body,” Andrew Bolton, the Costume Institute’s curator, shared. “It’s the common thread throughout the whole museum, which is really what the initial idea for the exhibition was.”
To helm the event, Vogue’s Anna Wintour has assembled a diverse group of cultural icons. Music royalty Beyoncé returns to the steps as a co-chair, joined by Academy Award winner Nicole Kidman and tennis legend Venus Williams. They will be supported by a host committee that bridges the worlds of luxury and entertainment, co-chaired by creative director Anthony Vaccarello and actress Zoë Kravitz, and includes Sabrina Carpenter, Doja Cat, Gwendoline Christie, Alex Consani, Misty Copeland, Elizabeth Debicki, Lena Dunham, Paloma Elsesser, LISA, Chloe Malle, Sam Smith, Teyana Taylor, Lauren Wasser, Anna Weyant, A’ja Wilson, Yseult, Adut Akech, Angela Bassett, Sinéad Burke, Rebecca Hall, Aimee Mullins, Tschabalala Self, Amy Sherald, and Chase Sui Wonders. Meanwhile, lead sponsors Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos will serve as honorary chairs.
The 2026 Met Gala will take place on May 4 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
