Met Gala 2023 Trivia | 70 facts about the fundraising event

“Met Gala” is an annual fundraising gala held on the first Monday of May for the benefit of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in New York City.

Let’s find out some trivia and facts about the event.

1. The Met Gala, or Met Ball is an annual fundraising gala held for the benefit of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in New York City
2. It was formally called the Costume Institute Gala or the Costume Institute Benefit
3. The Met Gala is popularly regarded as the world’s most prestigious and glamorous fashion event and social gathering
4. It is known as “fashion’s biggest night”
5. An invitation is highly sought after
6. Personalities who are perceived to be contemporaneously relevant to society amongst various professional spheres, including fashion, film, television, music, theater, business, sports, social media, and politics, are invited to attend the Met Gala
7. The event is organized by the fashion magazine Vogue
8. The Met Gala is an event held annually on the first Monday of May
9. It marks the opening of the Costume Institute’s annual fashion exhibit hosted on the Upper East Side of Manhattan
10. Many of the attendees are depicted on the covers and pages of Vogue
11. Each year’s event celebrates the specific theme of that year’s Costume Institute exhibition
12. This sets the tone for the formal attire of the night
13. Over time, the Met Gala has evolved from the New York epicenter to become increasingly global in its perspective
14. For instance, the 2023 Gala’s theme was titled “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty”, which honored the artistic contributions of the late German designer to the world of fashion and traced his evolution
15. All four co-chairs hailed from Europe
16. In 2022, the theme was titled “Gilded Glamour”, which honored the Gilded Age in New York
17. Guests are expected to curate their fashion to match the theme of the exhibit, which is generally haute couture
18. English journalist Anna Wintour, who is the editor-in-chief of Vogue, has chaired or co-chaired the Met Gala since 1995
19. The Met Gala was established in 1948 by fashion publicist Eleanor Lambert as a fundraiser for the newly founded Costume Institute to mark the opening of its annual exhibit
20. The first gala comprised a dinner
21. Tickets were 50 dollars each
22. Over the first few decades of its existence, the Gala was simply one of many annual benefits held for New York charitable institutions
23. Accordingly, the attendees of the early galas were almost entirely members of New York high society or the city’s fashion industry
24. From 1948 to 1971, the event was held at various Manhattan venues
25. Including the Waldorf Astoria, Central Park, and the Rainbow Room
26. When Diana Vreeland became consultant to the Costume Institute in 1972, the Gala began to evolve into a more global and glamorous affair
27. Although one that was still aimed at the high-societal set
28. The event started to become higher profile celebrity-oriented with attendees like Elizabeth Taylor, Andy Warhol, Bianca Jagger, Diana Ross, Elton John, Liza Minnelli, Madonna, and Cher intermixing with the city’s elite
29. It was during the Vreeland years that the Gala was first held at the Met
30. Also, in this period the Gala themes were introduced
31. The Met Gala is widely regarded as among the most prominent and most exclusive social events in the world
32. It is also one of the biggest fundraising nights in New York City
33. With US$9 million raised in 2013, $12 million the following year, and then rising to a record $17.4 million by 2022
34. The Met Gala is one of the most notable sources of funding for the Institute
35. With total contributions surpassing $200 million for the first time after the 2019 event
36. The Met Gala is held on the first Monday in May, according to Wintour
37. Her guest list grew to include celebrities globally from the worlds of fashion, entertainment, business, sports, and politics
38. They would eventually grace the pages of Vogue
39. Since 1948, the Met Gala has occurred consecutively each year, except in 2000 and 2002
40. The 2020 Met Gala was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
41. The Gala resumed in 2021, but was held in September rather than in May that year
42. In 2022, the Gala returned to holding its traditional May ceremony
43. The Met Costume Institute Gala is a highly renowned fundraising benefit that serves as an opening celebration for the Institute’s annual fashion exhibit
44. Following the event, the exhibition runs for several months
45. For example, the 2014 exhibition was scheduled to run from May 8 until August 10, 2014
46. The affair, attended by personalities from the arts, fashion, high-society, film, and music, has been held at the Met since 1948
47. It is considered to be the fashion industry’s premier annual red carpet event
48. Its red carpet fashions are widely photographed, reviewed, critiqued, and emulated
49. The museum is closed to the general public on the first Monday of May due to the Gala occurring
50. Anna Wintour, the editor-in-chief of Vogue and a chairwoman of the Gala event since 1995 (excluding 1996 and 1998), oversees both the benefit committee and the guest list, with Vogue staffers helping to assemble the list of invitees
51. In 2014, the individual tickets cost US$30,000 for those outside the official guest list, after prices were raised by $10,000 to increase the exclusivity of the event
52. The annual guest list is limited to approximately 650 or 700 people
53. Starting in the 2020s, the Met Gala has started including social-media influencers
54. The cost of a seat per guest to attend the Met Gala had risen to US$50,000 by 2023
55. The 2015 Gala and its theme of “China: Through the Looking Glass” became the subject of a documentary-The First Monday in May, directed by Andrew Rossi and produced by Condé Nast Entertainment, Vogue, and Relativity Studios
56. 225 approved photographers, reporters, and social media participants documented the event for the documentary
57. All other attendees were forbidden from using social media at the event
58. Guests received notices about the restriction of selfies and social media inside the gala
59. The no-selfie ordinance was extended to the following editions of the Met Gala
60. As of 2018, Wintour announced that guests may not be allowed to attend the gala before the age of 18
61. The exhibit is assigned a specific theme each year, with guests being expected to follow but not mandated
62. It includes a cocktail hour and a formal dinner
63. During the cocktail hour, guests arrive to walk on the red carpet, tour the year’s special themed exhibition, and be seated before the dinner party that includes entertainment from the preeminent entertainers of the day
64. The theme not only sets the tone for the annual exhibit, but also for the guests who attempt to dress to uphold the theme of the year, oftentimes causing runs on certain fashion themes among the world’s leading fashion retailers
65. Sometimes, such as in 2013, with Punk: Chaos to Couture, the theme given is considered unclear or difficult to follow because it does not provide a clear stylistic directive
66. At other times, such as in 2014, with Charles James: Beyond Fashion, the theme may be far more challenging for one gender, as James made clothing intended for women
67. Although, according to Vogue in 2021 Met Gala: American Fashion, Andrew Bolton was “really impressed by American designers’ responses to the social and political climate, particularly around issues of body inclusivity and gender fluidity”
68. Some other themes throughout the years were In America: An Anthology of Fashion (2022), In America: A Lexicon of Fashion (2021), and About Time: Fashion and Duration (2020)
69. The theme of the 2023 Met Gala was “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty”
70. It was a tribute to the late fashion designer and former creative director of Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld