In America: An Anthology of Fashion | Reflecting on the Met Gala 2022
Words by Keyona Fazli, Writer
Corsets, long-boned bodices, hour-glass shapes, and décolleté-cuts: the motifs of Gilded Age fashion desperately cried out at this year’s Met Gala.
Only a few short months after the last Met Gala in September 2021, Anna Wintour welcomed us back with the theme In America: An Anthology of Fashion, crafted to inspire its participants to indulge in the tenets of American style, celebrating US fashion icons as well as the underdogs of the design industry.
The Met Gala took place on 2 May in New York, celebrating the Costume Institute exhibition. The first part of the two-part museum exhibition – In America: A Lexicon of Fashion – took onlookers backwards, re-examining American fashion and identity by considering its vast and mutable nature, especially over the last decade as a result of political and social justice movements. Body inclusivity, gender fluidity, and self-reflexivity were expanded on by the event’s designers, providing the 75-year celebration of the Gala with both a sense of American design legacies and also the platform to form new ones.
2022s theme (Gilded Glamour) refers to the Gilded Age of America – a term coined by Mark Twain in 1873 – which spans from 1870 to 1890: a period of heavy industrialisation that led to vast sociocultural change.
Guests such as Alicia Keys took inspiration from the skyscrapers that seemingly shot up around New York overnight, while others such as Billie Eilish chose to reference the fashion in the period with corsets and bustles. Eilish’s head-to-toe Gucci outfit was Gilded and vegan; she made sure her outfit was made entirely from already-existing fabric and materials in order to remain sustainable. A combination of vintage jewellery and design, the corseted look did more than just capture the essence of Gilded fashion, it embodied the Age.
Simultaneously forward and backward-looking, but intricate and incredibly stylistically intriguing, Dove Cameron’s skeletal dress, made of the ‘bones’ or boning of Gilded fashion, managed to create a unique look that captures the silhouette of bustles. Cameron explained that since the era was defined by “using new technology and textiles to make grand fashion [and] grand design”, the futuristic look was conceived. With its lack of fabric, the Iris van Herpen gown is stripped back to its bare bones, capturing the celebration of exploratory design and the shapes present in Gilded fashion.
Others, such as Riz Ahmed, took a different approach; wearing a silk shirt and undershirt, he stated, “This is an homage to the immigrant workers who kept the Gilded Age going”. As an era of rapid economic growth that benefited the wealthy few, the Gilded Age exploited the majority, consisting of immigrant workers. Ahmed’s response to the theme presents a powerful message that also showcases the persecution of immigrants of colour, reminding all Met Gala viewers of the effects of racist policies in the Gilded Age such as the Chinese Exclusion Act, the effects of which still have consequences in the present day.
My personal favourite (and I know this is considered by many to be the most awe-inspiring look of the night) is Blake Lively’s transcendental Versace dress. In her own words, just like the Statue of Liberty, Lively “patinaed”, her gown transforming from bright copper to sea-foam green. Though interestingly, while Lively’s dress had layers removed from it to transform into the final decadent image of green, the process of patina occurs when a thin layer forms on top of the base copper metal. The design also made references to New York’s classic iconic buildings, from the detailing of the bodice (Empire State Building) to the draping fabric around the waist and hips (Statue of Liberty) to the painted constellations of Grand Central Station. Inspired by monumental structures in New York as opposed to the fashion of the Gilded Age, the design works to embrace the longevity of the period.
With far too many beautiful ensembles to describe in so few words – and yes, quite a few eye-sore interpretations as well, ahem, Kylie Jenner’s OFF-WHITE I am looking at you – the second part of In America: An Anthology of Fashion, provided a historical context for the Lexicon that came before it. Curator Andrew Bolton’s wish was that the stories behind the designs should reflect the evolution of American style, taking care to explore the work of individual dressmakers and designers as well. One of the main intentions of the exhibition was to spotlight the talents and contributions of the typically overshadowed members of the industry, most of them women and people of colour. With designs worn by celebrities such as Lizzo, Simone Ashley, Gemma Chan, and Jodie Turner-Smith, it seems Bolton’s desire for representation through fashion has shone through.