The Met Gala is one of the most prestigious and highly-anticipated events in the fashion calendar. Every year, on the first Monday in May, the red carpet is laid and the A-listers flock to show their designer costumes.

The theme for 2018 was ‘Heavenly Bodies’, and among the best-dressed were Blake Lively, Zendaya and Rihanna with their outfits inspired by Andrew Bolton’s exhibition on Catholicism and fashion. For 2019, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York has announced that its spring exhibition (and the theme of the gala) will be ‘Camp: Notes on Fashion’. As the curator, Bolton revealed the inspiration behind his choice was an essay by Susan Sontag: Notes on “Camp”, which argues that camp is the ‘love of the unnatural: of artifice and exaggeration.’ In an Interview with US Vogue, Bolton explained how his chosen theme and Sontag’s writing feel current within the context of today’s cultural and political climate.  

Speaking to The New York Times, Bolton describes ‘high camp’ as a “reaction to something.” With this in mind, I think we can expect bold and perhaps controversial political statements on the red carpet next year. We can also look forward to exaggerated shapes, patterns and an array of flamboyancy. As proven already by the appointment of Gucci’s Creative Director, Alessandro Michele, as co-chair of the gala.

The Gala, as always, will be chaired by Anna Wintour, and this year she has also selected Harry Styles, Lady Gaga and Serena Williams as her other co-chairs. There is also already speculation that there will be performances from both Styles and Gaga.  

By Harriet Timmins

Image: Elle.com