The 2027 Met Gala is going in a very different direction. After John Galliano stepped away from the Costume Institute exhibition, the Metropolitan Museum of Art has announced a new theme.
© GettyDubbed extraORDINARY: Fashion and the Poetics of the Everyday, it will look at how designers turn everyday clothing and objects into something extraordinary. Like jeans, T-shirts, sweatshirts, and other pieces that most people probably already have in their closets.
The exhibition was organized by Costume Institute curator in charge Andrew Bolton, along with Stephanie Kramer and Emily Mushaben. In the press release, Bolton made it clear that he wasn't looking to put together a simpler replacement.
“I didn’t have a plan B,” he told Vogue on November 5. “It was really important to come up with an exhibition that wasn’t just a masterwork show or something that we could do a little bit more easily.”
What is the 2027 Met Gala theme?
© Getty ImagesThe exhibition's full title is extraORDINARY: Fashion and the Poetics of the Everyday. That could mean looking at familiar staples like denim, white shirts, hoodies, trench coats, and puffer jackets in a completely new way. Rather than focusing on one designer's career, the exhibition will consider how everyday clothing has influenced fashion and how designers have reimagined pieces people wear all the time.
Bolton said he wanted the new exhibition to have the same ambition as the one originally planned around Galliano.
“I wanted it to be as challenging and as provocative and as beautiful as a John show would have been,” he told Vogue. “That was really important to me: to come up with an idea that wasn’t a substitute. And it had to have some sort of contemporary resonance.”
What will the 2027 Met Gala exhibition feature?
© AFP via Getty ImagesThe exhibition will be divided into two sections, “Familiar Forms” and “Common Matter.” “Familiar Forms” will focus on everyday garments and the way designers have transformed pieces that are already part of our wardrobes. The idea is to look beyond what these clothes were originally made for and consider their place in fashion.
“Common Matter” will take a different approach, looking at materials and objects that aren't usually associated with clothing. Paper, plastic and metal will be among the materials explored, with designs incorporating everyday objects such as cutlery, broken china and buttons.
Recycling, upcycling and reuse will also be recurring themes throughout the exhibition, including how designers give existing materials another purpose.
The Met has not announced an official dress code for 2027, so it's too early to know exactly how the theme will translate into the looks worn on the famous steps.
© GettyWhy did the 2027 Met Gala theme change?
© Corbis via Getty ImagesThe new exhibition comes after Galliano withdrew from John Galliano: Horizons, the retrospective that had originally been planned to honor him.
The designer announced his decision on August 31, following backlash over his past antisemitic and racist remarks. Galliano acknowledged the hurt his words had caused, particularly to Jewish and Asian communities.
“After much reflection and discussion with The Met and all those involved, I have decided, with great sadness, that it is best for the exhibition not to take place at this time,” he said in a statement shared on Instagram.
© Dave Benett/Getty Images“I remain fully accountable for the pain caused by my words in the past, particularly the hurt I caused to the Jewish and Asian communities, and I remain deeply sorry for it,” he added.
Anna Wintour also addressed the decision, saying she supported Galliano and the museum's choice to move forward without the exhibition. She continued to praise his influence and talent as a designer, describing him as a master of his craft.
When is the 2027 Met Gala?
© GettyThe 2027 Met Gala will take place on Monday, May 3, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. The extraORDINARY: Fashion and the Poetics of the Everyday exhibition will open to the public on May 9, 2027, and remain on view through January 9, 2028.
The Met has yet to announce the event's co-chairs or official dress code.
