THE JOURNAL
A$AP Rocky at the Met Gala celebrating “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line Of Beauty”, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1 May 2023. Photograph by Mr Carl Timpone/BFA.com
“Chic is a kind of mayonnaise,” Mr Karl Lagerfeld once noted. “Either it tastes or it doesn’t.” The condiments – if not always compliments – were certainly flowing at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art last night when the great and the good gathered to celebrate the legendary fashion designer at the institution’s annual gala. Lagerfeld, who died in 2019, would have appreciated the theme this year, Karl Lagerfeld: A Line Of Beauty (even posthumously, it was all about him). However, would he also have appreciated the outfits? Some attendees perhaps leaned more towards ketchup red. But who brought their own special sauce? Get a flavour of the night, below.
01.
Mr Jeremy Strong
Mr Jeremy Strong. Photograph by Mr Mike Coppola/Getty Images
As well as his intensity both off and on camera, the actor Mr Jeremy Strong is known for exclusively wearing brown. And – huh? – an interlinking toddler’s educational toy around his collar? In a colour palette that we might classify as “mint choc chip”, the Succession star was seen sporting a bold necklace from the Mr Frank Ocean’s Homer line. Which, now we come to think of it, is a very Kendall Roy move, especially when turning up to such a big game. The Roy scion is more of a TOM FORD man, while Strong here favours Prada, with a cheeky glint of a Richard Mille watch under his cuff, in a vibrant green to match the shirt.
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02.
Mr Tyler Mitchell
Mr Tyler Mitchell. Photograph by Mr Noam Galai/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images
The artist and photographer Mr Tyler Mitchell, who shot Beyoncé for the cover of Vogue when he was 23, is no stranger to the Met Gala’s red carpet. Last night he served up his strongest look so far: a lace-embroidered tuxedo worn with suitably delicate jewellery, lace socks and patent-leather opera pumps. There was a subtle symmetry to his choice of designer, BODE, whose founder, Ms Emily Adams Bode, took home the inaugural Karl Lagerfeld Award for Innovation at the International Woolmark Prize ceremony in 2020. The Woolmark, the fashion industry’s longest-established award for young designers, is best known for launching the career of Lagerfeld himself, who took home top honours in 1954 when he was 21 years old.
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03.
A$AP Rocky
A$AP Rocky. Photograph by Mr Taylor Hill/Getty Images
While some celebrities chose to honour Lagerfeld’s approach to design and beauty vision, some chose to celebrate his personal style – and A$AP Rocky did so brilliantly. The rapper, who walked the red carpet with a camelia-covered Rihanna, picked a Scottish-inspired look that the late Chanel designer wore to close the French powerhouse’s Tokyo show in 2004. He put his own recognisable twist on the blazer, collared shirt and pleated kilt combination with a pair of bejewelled jeans, western-inspired, steel-toe boots and black shades.
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04.
Bad Bunny
Bad Bunny. Photograph by Mr David Fisher/Shutterstock
Among a sea of overbaked menswear ensembles, the musician Bad Bunny (Mr Benito Ocasio) stood out for the relative simplicity of his boxy, 1990s-leaning white suit by Jacquemus. But there was a twist. Apart from the shawl fashioned from a spray of camellias, a nod to the event’s theme, the seemingly sober suit turned out to be backless. Avid menswear followers will remember last year’s Venice Film Festival, at which Mr Timothée Chalamet spawned a thousand angsty think pieces with his backless outfit. If two are enough to call it a trend, it looks like you should start working on your traps.
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05.
Mr Pete Davidson
Mr Pete Davidson. Photograph by Mr Taylor Hill/Getty Images
You may not have clocked the comedian and actor Mr Pete Davidson’s impeccable Prada suit at the last Met Gala, what with the most famous woman in the world in the most famous gown in the world on his arm soaking up all the limelight. This year, however, with no Ms Kim Kardashian to cower behind, all eyes were trained on him. Davidson pulled it out of the bag all by himself, with a little help from Fendi, showing up in suave tailoring that draped his lanky figure like a dream. He even let his inner funny guy shine by way of plentiful accessories and a printed T-shirt that helped knock the fancy suiting back a little.
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06.
Mr Dwyane Wade
Mr Dwyane Wade. Photograph by Mr John Shearer/Getty Images
Mock neck, check. Coat worn on shoulders, check. Leather, check. Black, check. It appears that the former basketball player Mr Dwyane Wade ticked all the boxes for the theme at last night’s Lagerfeld-inspired Met Gala. That said, while the influence of Chanel’s former creative director is abundantly clear, you can also feel the essence of Prada’s practical sexiness oozing through it. The leather vest, silver embellishments and the logoed gloves gave off a fierce coolness, while the understated trousers were the optimum Prada touch. It is a simple yet striking look that, in Wade’s words, was “giving a little Django”.
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07.
Mr Robert Pattinson
Mr Robert Pattinson. Photograph by Mr Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images
Looking at him from the left, you would be forgiven for thinking that the actor Mr Robert Pattinson was wearing a simple, well-cut suit from Dior. Spin him around and you’ll see that a pleated half skirt was flowing from the right side of his dinner jacket. Then there was the brooch worn in place of a tie and his jewel-encrusted Derbies – unusual details that took this look up a few notches in our book. You don’t have to go full stunt at the Met Gala to make a splash, or so argues Pattinson, and we agree.
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