Met Gala 2024 Theme Explained: Decoding ‘The Garden of Time’
Deep dive into this year’s theme, costume predictions, and what to expect (or not) from this year’s attendees. Better than last year? We hope so.
It’s almost time again for celebrities to WOW (disappoint) us with their well-thought-out (lazy) costume creations for “fashion’s biggest night” AKA the 2024 Met Gala on May 6th.
Why Does the Met Gala Exist?
If you’re reading this, you’re probably well aware of what the Met Gala is, but for the sake of context, I’ll explain. It’s an annual fundraising event for the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute in New York City. Every year, relevant celebrities and personalities are invited to attend the unveiling of a new exhibit, typically featuring haute couture costumes and apparel.
Each year, the exhibit itself has a different theme and the guests in attendance have a specific dress code they are expected to follow in relation to the theme.
Note: The theme and the dress code are often slightly different – the “dress code” typically being more open to interpretation.
What is the Theme of the 2024 Met Gala?
This year’s exhibit theme is “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion.” Nope, it’s not about princesses. It’s much more nuanced than that, of course. I’ll let the Met explain:
“Approximately 250 garments and accessories spanning four centuries will be on view, visually united by iconography related to nature, which will serve as a metaphor for the fragility and ephemerality of fashion and a vehicle to examine the cyclical themes of rebirth and renewal.” - The Metropolitan Museum of Art
The exhibition itself has many different layers. Those being (based on my interpretation):
Sustainability and preservation of garments
The natural world / its subsequent effects on pieces over time
The beauty and fragility of clothing
What is the Dress Code for Attendees?
The dress code is “The Garden of Time,” in reference to a 1962 short story of the same name, written by JG Ballard.
The story’s main themes are that of fleeting beauty, decay, and ruin. It also bring forth the idea of the human tendency towards creation and then ultimately… destruction. It’s honestly a very beautiful piece of literature, not to get all “english teacher” on you. You can read the full short story here if you’re interested. I will be referencing this story and its motifs throughout the newsletter, so if you want the #fullscope, i’d highly recommend giving it a quick read.
What the Hell are Celebrities Going to Wear?
Listen, I genuinely hope attendees show up in fabulous outfits that are smart, well-thought-out, and most importantly… on theme. But based on the ghosts of Met Gala’s past, I’m not holding my breath.
It’s unfortunate, but I’ll say it. Every year since 2019’s “Camp: Notes on Fashion” exhibit, it’s been a total flop red carpet-ly speaking. No one follows the theme anymore and for, essentially the largest, most prestigious costume party in the world, that’s blasphemous.
I genuinely care nothing at all about if someone looks “good" at the Met Gala. That’s quite literally not the point. Celebrities show up to red carpets all the time looking good. The Met Gala is the one night where it’s literally JUST about the fashion, and to show up not on theme is disrespectful, boring, and most importantly, lame.
Despite my usual severe disappointment, I am a tiny bit optimistic about this year. With the exhibit and the theme consisting of so many layers and interpretations, I think it will be easier for guests to dress accordingly (hopefully). There are so many routes they could take that I’m excited to see the interpretations of a theme I actually enjoy. Fingers crossed they don’t let me down. It’s really exhausting being a hater.
Okay, let’s dissect. We’ll dive into the possible interpretations of the theme, ideas of what guests might wear, and what I think would be pretty neat to see.
Literal: Becoming ‘The Garden of Time’
While a literal interpretation of the theme could be considered lazy, I believe that if done “right,” could work well. Yes, I’m sure that someone will simply show up in a large floral gown. That is boring. That is lazy. You know what wouldn’t be lazy? Showing up as the actual garden.
There is such a potential for a beautiful detailing moment within a dramatic costume type of look. Real flowers could be woven into the fabric in a unique way. Vines or moss could make their way into the garment.
I’m talking in a way that is full-on Midsommar May Queen. I think the way to make this work is for the attendee in question to completely abandon the idea of “wearing the look” and take a back seat to the art. Let the garden be the main focus and simply be the vessel for it.
It doesn’t work if they are dead set on being the centerpiece. That’s just my opinion, but if someone is willing to do it right, I’ll be seated for it.
This would also be a great opportunity for designers to play around with accessories. Custom garden inspired head pieces, jewelry, and thought provoking add-ons could elevate any of the looks and be used to tell a full story.
The Alexander McQueen Spring 2001 bird dress (pictured below) would be a showstopper, incorporating a natural element from the garden in a way that also ties into the theme of deterioration by the forces of nature.
Campy Costume: I Am Flower, Hear Me Bloom
Every year since the “Camp: Notes on Fashion” Met Gala, there have been a number of celebrities adopting a camp style rendition of whatever the theme is… and to that I say “fun!” I love a ridiculous fashion moment where you can tell nothing is SO serious.
Opting for a cartoon-y, over the top garden aesthetic would be refreshing to see. This would be a bit of a sillier take on the previously mentioned literal interpretation. Of course, Moschino has done this all too well, especially with their Spring 2018 Ready-to-Wear Collection and I’m sure in many others. Like I said before, if you’re going to BE the garden… go big or get roasted.
Physically portraying the motifs in the story itself could be another creative direction to go, literally speaking.
Another camp-coded direction would be to physically become time. My obsession for clothes made of everyday objects (Nicole McLaughlin’s biggest fan) lends me to believe a look created entirely of watches or clocks would be a fashion feat for any brand, if they’re willing to tackle it. Or if someone showed up a Father Time. That’d be quite silly but I’m here for it.
Out of Touch: Sleeping Beauty
The exhibit theme is called “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion.” But, you know what? That’s not the dress code and I think to dress in anything geared toward the literal interpretation of the “exhibit” name would be a disservice, since the title is not to be interpreted literally at all.
The garments featured are “sleeping beauties” because they’re unable to be worn due to their delicacy. That’s it. I keep seeing articles and Instagram posts featuring the popular Viktor & Rolf F/W 2005 look as inspiration for this year’s Met Gala and to be frank, it bugs me.
I love Viktor & Rolf and I’m a huge fan of their “Bedtime Story” collection, but this is out-of-touch, low-hanging fruit. In this case, if someone shows up in a giant comforter, their lazy decision-making will have physically manifested on the carpet.
Essence: Garden Party Guest?
“The Garden of Time” story is regarded as a dystopian tale. There aren’t any clear signs (to my knowledge) of when the story actually takes place. The gist is that Count Axel and his wife live in a decadent villa with a beautiful garden filled with crystal flowers that can slow time when plucked. Throughout the story, an angry mob is headed toward their home with the intention of destruction. Count Axel plucks the time flowers to stall the mob, but ultimately runs out. The mob comes to destroy everything.
After having read the story, I have a picture painted in my mind of what the Count Axel and his wife must have dressed like, as they read in their library and played Mozart on the harpsichord. It’s an extravagant 18th century style I’m picturing. I think guests could go this route and dress as if they are attending a garden party at the garden of time. This could be a fun take on the theme, wearing large sculpted gowns, giant exaggerated hats, pearls, etc. There’d be much to choose from in John Galliano’s body of work at Dior, and I could see someone taking advantage of his popularity/resurgence after his critically acclaimed Spring 2024 Maison Margiela collection early this year.
Conceptual: Fleeting Beauty & Fragility
Dressing in relation to this idea is most interesting to me. I think guests could really play around with the overall theme of decay, delicacy of garments, fleeting beauty, and the elements. That’s what this whole exhibit is about. It seems a waste not to take advantage of it.
Withered gowns, burnt dresses, decaying fabrics would all be perfect. Costuming that illustrated what the forces of nature can do to clothes and why they need to be preserved and protected as art. Maybe even having detailing where bugs or insects are literally eating away at the clothes.
Preservation and sustainability are huge right now and part of a larger conversation going on in the fashion industry. This year’s Met Gala theme is the perfect catalyst for designers to actually make a unique statement with their clothes that will likely carry on, if done correctly.
I would absolutely love to see a performance/transformation almost like Zendaya did with her Cinderella look at the 2019 Met Gala or Blake Lively in 2022 but with this theme. Someone could arrive in a beautiful gown and somehow the gown becomes tattered or withered in real time on the carpet. Fingers crossed someone decides to go full send on something like this.
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Final Thoughts
There are tons of options to play around with here. This theme lends itself to many interpretations. I’d be saddened to see a bunch of recreations of the old archival pieces that can no longer be worn… which unfortunately I think will be the case. This seems like the laziest cop out — even lazier than the sleeping beauty of it all, which is why I didn’t want to go so far as creating an entire section for that idea.
I sincerely hope the ball isn’t dropped. I’ll be reviewing fits on my Instagram story, so look out for that, as well as a broader review in the next newsletter. Check my Pinterest board if you want more inspo for this year’s theme! Toodles.