Corset central: The best ‘Gilded Glamour’ looks from the Met Gala 2022

And with the blink of an eye, eight months have passed since celebrities last ascended the Met steps, and the annual It party of the fashion world is back! For the first time since the pandemic hit, the Met Gala returned on its traditional first Monday in May slot to celebrate the unsung heroes of American design as part of the two-part Costume Institute exhibition that first debuted last fall (head here for a refresher). 

The theme of this year’s exhibition is ‘In America: An Anthology of Fashion’ and explores looks from the 18th century to present day as a sort of historic cache of the evolving styles of the country. It will be on display across 13 of the American period rooms in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, with films directed by Martin Scorsese, Sofia Coppola and Chloé Zhao as freeze frames of fashion moments across American history. The full exhibition will be on display through September 5, 2022.

As for this year’s official co-chairs? Regina King, Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, and Lin-Manuel Miranda stepped up to host, alongside designer Tom Ford, Instagram’s Adam Mosseri, and Anna Wintour as honorary co-chairs.

Finally, the bit that we’ve all been waiting for: the fashion. While the attire for part one, In America: A Lexicon of Fashion, revolved around ‘American Independence’, volume two brought out plenty of jaw-dropping looks under the ‘Gilded Glamour’ white-tie dress code. It’s a reference to the Gilded Age, a period of rapid economic growth (and extravagant fashion) in American history when industrialisation was taking off in New York and beyond. We expected plenty of lavish embellishments, boned corsets and over-the-top drama à la the regencycore of Bridgerton, and celebrities did not disappoint.

Ahead, click through to see the most memorable looks from the night. Which celebrities do you think were most on theme?

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