From Tyla dressing as the sands of time to Sydney Sweeney in three-dimensional flowers, the biggest night in fashion saw some of the most famous people in world the opt for nature and fairytale themed looks on the red carpet.
This year the event was titled Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion while the dress code is The Garden of Time.
But the theme was almost very different. Initially the Gala was going to celebrate John Galliano with the theme a retrospective on his career.
The 63-year-old British designer, who is head of Maison Margiela, wowed the fashion world in January with his collection widely regarded as a work of genius, with his long-term ally and Met Gala chair Anna Wintour keen to celebrate him at the gala.
But after a documentary High and Low explored Gallino’s chequered history – including racist comments – and his decades long fight for forgiveness the museum decided to put the retrospective on an indefinite hold.
However, three of the most famous faces on the red carpet – Zendaya, Kim Kardashian and Bad Bunny – all wore looks designed by the star.
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Zendaya, 27, is considered one of the best dressed women in the world thanks to her work with supestar stylist Law Roach.
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She made a statement in a blue and green custom featuring branch and fruit accents
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She then slipped on a second look – a 1996 black Givenchy by John Galliano gown – with an 2007 Alexander McQueen floral hat
Zendaya, 27, is considered one of the best dressed women in the world thanks to her work with supestar stylist Law Roach.
She made a statement in a blue and green custom featuring branch and fruit accents.
The Challengers actress added a Bulgari necklace and a striking veiled hat – complete with dramatic eye makeup, thinned brows and dark hued lipstick with a faux bird over one shoulder and a large feather in her hat.
She then slipped on a second look – a 1996 black Givenchy by John Galliano gown – with an 2007 Alexander McQueen floral hat.
Meanwhile, Bad Bunny, who is one of the co-chairs of the event, led the way for menswear in a Renaissance inspired number – also custom Maison Margiela.
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Elsewhere Kim Kardashian, who often has one of the most talked about looks of the night, sent shockwaves through the Met Gala as she flaunted her astonishingly small waist in a silver custom Maison Margiela gown
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Kim, who rocked her newly dyed platinum blonde locks in a loose mermaid braid, added an uncharacteristically casual grey shrug to her silvery corset gown and a and a sheer floral accented maxi skirt
Do you think it was wrong for some celebrities to wear Galliano?
Bad Bunny looked like he would have fit right in the 15th century as he sported a navy blue suit featuring white contrast stitch resembling pin-stripes as the trousers featured bright red stripes down the inside.
He teamed the look with a pair of the French fashion-house’s signature tabi style boots with a white to brown to black fade.
He accessorised with black leather gloves, massive diamond studded earrings, and gold rimmed sunglasses featuring diamond-shaped lenses.
Perhaps the boldest part of his look was a massive navy patte hat as he carried along a bouquet of flowers which mirrored his look.
Elsewhere Kim Kardashian, who often has one of the most talked about looks of the night, sent shockwaves through the Met Gala as she flaunted her astonishingly small waist in a silver custom Maison Margiela gown.
Kim, who rocked her newly dyed platinum blonde locks in a loose mermaid braid, added an uncharacteristically casual grey shrug to her silvery corset gown and a and a sheer floral accented maxi skirt.
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Meanwhile, Bad Bunny, who is one of the co-chairs of the event, led the way for menswear in a Renaissance inspired number – also custom Maison Margiela
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Bad Bunny looked like he would have fit right in the 15th century as he sported a navy blue suit featuring white contrast stitch resembling pin-stripes as the trousers featured bright red stripes down the inside
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Adrien went for a more lowkey look in a black Maison Margiela tuxedo and bowtie, and had a large silver brooch pinned to his lape
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Natasha opted for a structured dress with netting and a cobweb like design
Galliano also dressed Gwendoline Christie, who walked in the January runway show, Adrien Brody, and Indian socialite Natasha Poonawalla.
The Game of Thrones star, 45, opted for a statement custom Maison Margiela ensemble with a quirky sheer cape as she struck a pose at the event.
She transformed her long straight locks into a jaw-dropping naturalistic blonde wig and teamed her look with mustard yellow high-heels and wore a swipe of bright red lipstick.
Adrien went for a more lowkey look in a black Maison Margiela tuxedo and bowtie, and had a large silver brooch pinned to his lapel, while Natasha opted for a structured dress with netting and a cobweb like design.
Despite being a darling of the industry, previously making Rihanna‘s papal-inspired Met Gala look to Kate Moss’ wedding dress, John Galliano’s career has been plauged with controversy.
From Rihanna’s papal-inspired Met Gala look to Kate Moss’ wedding dress, some of the most famous moments of 21st Century fashion have come from the brilliant mind of John Galliano.
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Galliano also dressed Gwendoline Christie, who walked in the January runway show, Adrien Brody , and Indian socialite Natasha Poonawalla.
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The Game of Thrones star, 45, opted for a statement custom Maison Margiela ensemble with a quirky sheer cape as she struck a pose at the even
In March, a documentary explored the designer’s life, scandals and triumphant return to Paris Couture Fashion Week, after being dropped from Dior in 2011 for hurling anti-Semitic insults at a group of Jewish women in a Paris bar.
The past controversy is perhaps the reason why the MoMa ultimately opted not to go with the designer for the theme of the ball.
There was some backlash over last year’s theme which celebrated the late Karl Lagerfield – a man who was hailed for his fashion genius but criticised for a Islamophobia, sexism, fatphobia and bodyshaming.
Galliano, now 10-years sober, sat down with Oscar-winning Kevin Macdonald to discuss his rise, fall and return – from the pits of Paris Fashion Week to one of the most sought-after names in the industry.
Raised the child of a plumber, in south London, Galliano says he was inspired by his Spanish mother, who dressed him and his sisters in immaculately pressed and starched clothes whenever they left the family home.
At the age of 16, he left school to study textile design at East London College, before enrolling at the prestigious St Martin’s School of Art in 1980.
He worked as a dresser at the National Theatre and threw himself into the London club scene – experiences that undoubtedly imprinted his design aesthetic.
After starting an eponymous line in the 1980s, Galliano was appointed as the designer of Givenchy in 1996.
He soon transitioned to Dior, before being spectacularly fired after he was filmed expressing admiration for Hitler and telling a woman, who he thought was Jewish, that her parents should have been gassed.
Heavily intoxicated, he then allegedly ranted to an Asian man sitting with her: ‘****ing Asian b******’.
During his one-day trial in June 2011, Galliano admitted two instances of making anti-Semitic and racist comments and, that September, was given two suspended fines, totalling 6,000 euros.
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John Galliano walks the runway during the Dior Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2003 show at Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week on January 20, 2003
Watch trailer for documentary following rise and fall of John Galliano
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Kate Moss wears a John Galliano gown for her wedding to Jamie Hince on July 1, 2011 in Southrop
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Rihanna wore a John Galliano design to the Heavenly Bodies: Fashion & The Catholic Imagination Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 7, 2018 in New York City
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A model presents a creation by John Galliano for Dior during the Spring/Summer 2006 Haute Couture collection
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In honour of Dior’s memory, Galliano designed 47 breathtaking costumes, each evoking the spirit of the couturier’s favourite artists, for the brands 60th anniversary
Galliano’s lawyer cited his struggles with drugs, alcohol and work, noting that he was designing up to 32 collections each year.
Additionally, he was ordered to pay three plaintiffs and five antidiscrimination groups 1 euro each in damages and a combined 16,500 euros in costs.
Face of Dior, Natalie Portman, was among those outraged by his outburst more than two decades ago.
At the time, the Oscar-winning actress said: ‘In light of this video, and as an individual who is proud to be Jewish, I will not be associated with Mr Galliano in any way.
‘I hope at the very least these terrible comments remind us to reflect and act upon combating these still-existing prejudices that are the opposite of all that is beautiful.’
Galliano consistently maintained that he is not anti-Semitic or racist but acknowledged struggling with addiction to alcohol, Valium and sleeping tablets, leading him to seek rehabilitation.
It seems that this was the tip of the iceberg for Galliano, who had a string of drunken indiscretions to his name.
Years earlier, coming off the high of another Fashion Week, Galliano stripped naked and spent four hours in a lift at The Ritz, telling guests who tried to enter that he was a lion, while growling at them.
Inside John Galliano’s career
As a student of St Martin’s College of Art (now Central Saint Martins), Galliano garnered attention for his degree collection, heavily influenced by revolutionary France.
His graduate collection, Les Incroyables, was immediately purchased by the fashion boutique Browns and displayed in its South Molton Street windows the following day.
Galliano founded his eponymous label with long-term collaborators Amanda Harlech, then a stylist with Harpers and Queen, and milliner Stephen Jones.
The St Martin’s School of Art graduate won four British Fashion Designer of the Year awards and was celebrated for his unconventional work, which frequently challenged the industry.
Initially, financial support was provided by Johan Brun. When this arrangement concluded, Danish entrepreneur Ole Peder Bertelsen, owner of the company Aguecheek, which was also supporting Katharine Hamnett, took over control.
However, this agreement ended in 1988, influencing Galliano’s decision to relocate to Paris the following year in search of financial backing.
The designer secured the backing of Faycal Amor, owner of fashion brand Plein Sud, who invited him to set up his base in Paris.
Galliano’s first show was presented in 1989 as part of Paris Fashion Week. But the financial agreement with Amor was short-lived and ended in 1993, resulting in the designer’s absence from that season.
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John Galliano poses for a portrait in his eleventh arrondissement Paris atelier in 2000
With the help of American Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour and André Leon Talley, then European correspondent at Vanity Fair, Galliano was introduced to Portuguese socialite and fashion patron São Schlumberger, as well as financial backers of venture firm Arbela Inc, John Bult and Mark Rice.
‘Of course, I’d heard of him. But it really wasn’t until Andre and I started to help him with his shows in Paris that he and I became… friends,’ Wintour explains in High & Low.
‘It isn’t often you meet a great designer. If you think of the Brit designers that have really changed the way women dress, or look, or how we think about fashion… but immediately when you saw what John was doing, you realised that he was one of them, so we had to help him.’
This partnership provided Galliano with the financial backing and social endorsement necessary for establishing credibility in Paris.
His next collection – in which Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss modelled for free – played a pivotal role in the development of Galliano as a fashion house, and is regarded as a ‘fashion moment’ in high fashion circles.
In 1995, Galliano was named the designer of Givenchy by Bernard Arnault, owner of luxury goods conglomerate LVMH, marking the first time an Englishman took the helm of one of France’s luxury houses.
While the news sent shockwaves through the fashion world, it did not seem to affect the supremely confident designer.
His long-time collaborator, Amanda Harlech, once described him by saying: ‘I did only once and I can only compare it to being hit by a massive surfing wave. His indifference was absolute.’
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Model Kate Moss pictured in 1993 wearing one of Galliano’s designs
Galliano showcased his first couture show for Givenchy at the Stade de France, receiving widespread acclaim from the media. Additionally, a number of designs were licenced to Vogue Patterns.
In 1996, he made the transition to Dior under LVMH, with Alexander McQueen stepping into the role at Givenchy.
‘Something evoked in me, I felt like Rocky,’ Galliano enthuses in the documentary. ‘I thought I’m really going to go for this.’
Galliano’s assurance won him a roster of celebrity supporters, including actresses Charlize Theron and Marion Cotillard, who frequently donned his designs.
One of his first dresses for Dior was worn by Diana, Princess of Wales at the fashion house’s 50th anniversary party in New York.
The dress, described by critics as an ‘unsupported petticoat’, caused a stir and made the front pages of several newspapers.
In 2001, Galliano was made a Commander of the British Empire for his services to the fashion industry, and received his award from the Queen at Buckingham Palace that November.
For the investiture, Galliano – with long blond hair and pencil-thin moustache – wore a traditional morning suit, eschewing a shirt.
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John Galliano and Charlize Theron at the 2006 Met Gala, held at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York
‘I was surprised when I was awarded a CBE,’ he said. ‘It’s one of the greatest honours I’ve ever had – I’m very proud.’
Another notable career moment was creating a showgirl costume for Kylie Minogue to don during the Showgirl, The Greatest Hits Tour in Europe, 2005.
Additionally, Galliano designed Kate Moss’ dress for her wedding to Jamie Hince in 2011, as per the mode’s request during his tenure at Dior.
Recalling the big day, the designer says: ‘Before she came out, she held my hand, she was shaking and said, “Who am I?” I said, “You’re fabulous and he’s about to discover your want past”. And the rest was just Kate.’
The dress featured an understated silhouette with a figure-hugging fit and intricate golden paillette embroidery, reflecting the delicate couture touch synonymous with the designer’s work at Dior.
The hotel called his office in Paris, who offered to cover the bills of any guests who had become inconvenienced.
Now admitting his demons, Galliano begins the documentary by saying: ‘I’m going to tell you everything’ – from dealing with his devout Catholic parents’ horrified reaction to his homosexuality to his abuse of Valium, bromides, amphetamines and sleeping pills.
‘I was committing suicide, slowly,’ he says.
He also revealed struggles with his workload and depression following the deaths of his father and close friends Steven Robinson and Alexander McQueen.
Despite his explanations, the fallout from Galliano’s rant resulted in the termination of his 15-year tenure as creative director at Dior – where he was earning £4 million-a-year.
The designer was exiled from fashion – yet only temporarily – and he designed Kate Moss’ wedding dress the same year, calling the project his ‘creative rehab’.
In an interview with WWD, Kevin Macdonald recalled being in New York when videos of Galliano’s anti-Semantic outburst emerged online.
‘I was kind of repulsed by him and the way he looked,’ the film director said.
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John Galliano poses with Linda Evangelista (L), Naomi Campbell (3rd R) and Gisele Bundchen (2nd R) at the end of the Christian Dior Fall/Winter 2007 Haute Couture collection show in Paris
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John Galliano pictured with Naomi Campbell, Helena Christensen and Kate Moss in Paris on October 15, 1996
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(L-R) Anna Wintour, John Galliano and Charlize Theron attend CFDA/VOGUE Fashion Fund Awards at Skylight Studios on November 17, 2008 in New York City
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Princess Diana attends the 50th anniversary celebration of Dior in New York, 1996
‘I have lost family in the Holocaust and my grandfather’s family all died.
‘That’s a part of why I felt a personal repulsion, but at the same time, I’m always interested in films about ambiguous characters who you’re not quite sure what to think of them.’
A number of John Galliano’s friends and former employees share their thoughts on-screen, including Anna Wintour, Naomi Campbell, Charlize Theron, Amanda Harlech and Kate Moss.
‘We’re both shy and a bit awkward, ’til we’ve had a drink,’ Moss says, chuckling.
The supermodel starred in Galliano’s first show in Paris, admitting ‘I was so nervous’.
She goes on to explain that Galliano, now a good friend, taught her how to walk down the catwalk: ‘He said put your hips and your pelvis forwards… and lean back.
‘No one gives you direction like John, there was always a story in every show. It’s fantasy, and that’s what fashion should be.’
‘He’d say, “You’re a princess and you’ve just escaped the castle… and the walls are after you. You’ve got to run Kate, run!”‘
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John Galliano walks the runway at the end of the Dior show as part of the Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2011 at Musee Rodin on July 5, 2010
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John Galliano poses for photographs after receiving an CBE from Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace on November 27, 2001
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Kylie Minogue wearing showgirl costume designed by John Galliano, Showgirl, The Greatest Hits Tour, Sportpaleis, Antwerpen, Belgium, 28th March 2005
Edward Enninful, former editor-in-chief of British Vogue, adds: ‘For other designers, they were just models. But with John, they became actresses.
‘He would take them on a journey, through countries, through time. And they would come up feeling so enthused, so excited.’
There is also an appearance from Philippe Virgitti, the target of the designer’s anti-Semitic comments.
During the 2011 court hearing in Paris, Virgitti stated: ‘I don’t think he’s racist or anti-Semitic. I just think he’s very ill.’
However, in the documentary, he explains how Galliano’s verbal attack has negatively impacted his life – and does not forgive him.
Galliano insists that he apologised to Virgitti, but Virgitti denies this.
‘There is no real explanation for the designer’s behaviour. His psychiatrist believes he looked, at random, for a hateful stereotype in our culture,’ he says.
Meanwhile, Sidney Toledano, the Jewish boss of Dior, suggests that anti-Semitism could have been weaved into his Catholic upbringing.
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John Galliano walks the runway during the Christian Dior Fall/Winter 2002-2003 fashion show at Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week
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John Galliano and Anna Wintour have been friends for a number of years
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Edward Enninful (L) and John Galliano attend a drinks reception ahead of The Fashion Awards 2017 in partnership with Swarovski at Royal Albert Hall on December 4, 2017
The film also shows a clip of the designer the day after his father’s funeral in 2003, where Galliano’s voice appears slurred, and his pupils gigantic, as he prepares for his next fashion show.
Following a two-month stay at Cottonwood Rehab Clinic in Arizona, Galliano briefly joined Oscar de la Renta in New York.
The move was reportedly arranged by Anna Wintour, American Vogue editor-in-chief, and Jonathan Newhouse, chairman of Conde Nast International.
Mr Newhouse is also said to have put Galliano in contact with Rabbi Barry Marcus, who, at the time, was the senior minister of Central Synagogue in London.
Rabbi Marcus educated the designer in antisemitism, introduced him to a Holocaust survivor and invited him to services at his synagogue.
‘Over time, we built up a relationship and I’m absolutely satisfied that to brand him as an antisemite would be an injustice,’ the rabbi explained.
‘His knowledge of Jews and Judaism was actually very limited.’
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Czech supermodel Eva Herzigova walks the runway for Dior at Paris Couture Fashion Week in 2005
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John Galliano (second right) poses with models during the Christian Dior Haute Couture fashion show for Autumn/Winter 2009 in Paris
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John Galliano pictured with models wearing his creations for the luxury fashion brand Dior during the Autumn/Winter Haute Couture show on January 25, 2010
In 2014, John Galliano was appointed creative director of Belgian brand Maison Margiela, which described him as one of the ‘greatest undisputed talents of all time’.
‘Margiela is ready for a new charismatic creative soul,’ said Renzo Rosso, president of the label’s parent company OTB, in a statement.
‘John Galliano is one of the greatest, undisputed talents of all time. A unique, exceptional couturier for a Maison that always challenged and innovated the world of fashion.
‘I look forward to his return to create that fashion dream that only he can create, and wish him to here find his new home.’
Galliano, who oversees the design of all Margiela lines, including couture and women’s ready-to-wear, presented his first collection for the house during Paris Couture Week in January 2015.
Marking the first time Rihanna wore Margiela to the Met Gala, Galliano created the singer’s iconic Pope-inspired ensemble for the 2018 event, following the theme, Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination.
The extraordinary look, featuring a heavily beaded robe, matching mitre and mini dress, referenced Galliano’s Dior Couture 2001 collection, which was inspired by papal regalia.
The release of High & Low coincides with a catwalk comeback as Galliano made a triumphant return to Paris Couture Fashion Week with Maison Margiela’s Spring/Summer 2024 collection.
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The first look from Maison Margiela’s Spring 2024 collection featured a male model wearing a corset
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The designer showcased an array of experimentations: fabrics underwent silicone treatments to create a wet appearance
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Galliano transformed the left bank underbelly of the Pont Alexandre III in Paris into a 1920s dive bar, illuminated by a subdued glow from spotlights
In January, Galliano transformed the left bank underbelly of Paris’ Pont Alexandre III bridge into a 1920s dive bar, illuminated by a subdued glow from spotlights.
The Artisan collection, which showcased unique fabric techniques and porcelain-effect make-up, earned the designer a thunderous, five-minute standing ovation.
Now a decade sober, Galliano, who was once recognised for strutting down the catwalk at the end of a show, has adopted a low-profile approach and no longer makes an appearance.
Galliano told Macdonald that he wasn’t expecting to be forgiven following the documentary, but instead to be ‘a little more understood’.
The collection received worldwide critical acclaim, with Anna Wintour telling The Times ‘the Maison Margiela couture show captured so many people’s imaginations’ and ‘it was a reminder that when John’s work soars, it lifts fashion higher.’
