Pushing the Edge
At the Met Gala
In honor of provocative designer Rei Kawakubo, creator of Commes des Garcons, the red carpet for the 44th Met Gala did not disappoint the fashion fanatics and freaks gathered to see the outrageous interpretations of her aesthetics. Most of the celebrity attendees took much-applauded risks with extreme hair, makeup, and costume choices, and clearly were having “a ball” with the evening’s avant-garde theme. Kawakubo has traditionally stayed true to black, white, and grey monochromatic color schemes but once she announced, “Red is the new black,” the crimson hue started showing up in her work. And many of the designers who created looks for the Gala this year, heard her colorful call. Co-host Katy Perry caused a stir when she arrived in a blood red burqua-like confection with the word “Witness” embroidered over her eyes, designed by bad-boy John Galliano for Maison Margiela. Met-vet Rihanna got her very own CDG costume and hit the wacky home run we were hoping for. Models Bella Hadid and Kendall Jenner wore almost nothing at all, but somehow it worked. And Cara Delevigne probably raised the most dark eyebrows when she arrived with her newly bald-head—perfect timing, Cara!—painted silver. Unfortunately, not all the guests got the be-weird memo and some of our favorite celebs ended up playing it safe. We were bored silly by Kim Kardashian’s subdued look, Selena Gomez’s pink slip dress, and Elle Fanning’s Sleeping Beauty gown. As Rei herself once said, “For something to be beautiful, it doesn’t have to be pretty.”