“Costume Art” was the theme of the 2026 Met Gala, with the biggest names in celebrity fashion putting their spin on the “Fashion Is Art” dress code. For a lot of the attendees walking the carpet at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on Monday, that meant the naked dress, as Kendall and Kylie Jenner freed the (faux) nipple, while Kim Kardashian, Hailey Bieber and more stunned in sculpted breastplates.
As many predicted, Kylie Jenner attended the Met Gala solo, while boyfriend Timothée Chalamet was preoccupied with the NBA playoffs, and she straight-up dropped jaws in a Schiaparelli dress that appeared to be falling off, exposing a nude corset beneath:
Kylie Jenner's skirt featured more than 2,000 sating stitching balls, Who What Wear reports, as well as 10,000 natural baroque pearls and more than 7,000 painted pearlescent fish scales. Its creation sounds truly laborous, with the embroidery alone reportedly taking 11,000 hours.
Article continues belowA chunky antique silver necklace adorned with rhinestones, pearls and sculpted bird heads served as quite the statement piece, along with matching earrings.
Like her little sister, Kendall Jenner also dressed as if caught in an “oops” moment, wearing a GapStudio look designed by Zac Posen with a corset underneath — a 3D scan of Kendall's body was made to ensure a perfect fit — with a faux breast falling out of the dress that would make sister Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS nipple bra proud.
Speaking of Kim Kardashian, she took the exposed nipple look in a different direction, donning a high-necked sculpted bronze breastplate, which she paired with a leather skirt left open in the front, giving it the feel of a cape. She worked with artist Allen Jones, designer duo Whitaker Malem for fashion’s biggest night — where she also debuted a new blonde blowout:
The Kardashian-Jenner family members were far from the only attendees playing to the naked theme. In fact, Hailey Bieber attended the Met Gala in a sculpted breastplate of her own, looking like a full Greek goddess in custom Saint Laurent. Justin Bieber’s wife went bold in a 24-karat gold sculpted bodice, which she paired with a gorgeous blue silk chiffon skirt and matching scarf:
However, when it came to portraying living, breathing sculptures, perhaps no one went as hard (or as literal) as Heidi Klum, who was unrecognizable as she paid homage to Raffaelle Monti’s 1847 sculpture the Veiled Vestal by transforming into it:
We know how seriously Heidi Klum takes her costumes (we all remember the Halloween when she was a worm, right?), and she made sure every inch of her body was monochromatic, adding gray contact lenses and painting her hands, feet and face — including her teeth.
The "Costume Art" theme proved to be quite the night for those inspired by the human body and the connection between art and fashion.
