The "Costume Art" exhibition is part of the Costume Institute's program and is based on the idea of presenting clothing items alongside artworks such as paintings and sculptures. This aims to show how fashion, the body, and identity have been represented and interpreted throughout history.
The new gallery, named the Conde M. Nast Galleries, will open on May 10 in a space adjacent to the museum's Great Hall. Spanning nearly 12,000 square meters, it will serve as a new, central exhibition area for the Met Museum's fashion collection.
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The exhibition will feature over 400 items from the museum's rich collection, paired with artworks to highlight the connections between fashion and visual art. The exhibition will also be linked to the Met Gala event, with the dress code for the gala being "Fashion is Art."
"Fashion is more art than art is," said Andy Warhol, a statement often cited in discussions about the relationship between fashion and art. Curator Andrew Bolton also addresses this topic, emphasizing that fashion represents life experience and is the only art form that directly embodies everyday life.
As noted, the goal of the new installation is to present fashion not just as clothing, but as a narrative that connects culture, history, and identity, and to raise new questions about the boundaries between fashion and art through the exhibition.
Max Hollein, the executive director and director of the Metropolitan Museum, calls the new galleries a "powerful continuation" of what the institution has long been doing.
"The Costume Institute is part of our identity. The new galleries do not represent a revolution," he said.
In the context of fashion's growing importance within museum settings, Dasha Zhukova, an art collector, businesswoman, and museum trustee, also speaks about the new galleries and their role at the Met:
"Fashion at the Met has evolved from celebrating beauty and craftsmanship to exploring culture, politics, and history. It's not just about what we wear, but also about what our clothing tells us about who we are. Therefore, I wouldn't call it controversial that the Costume Institute has taken a central place at the Met. The new galleries are about perspective, not hierarchy," she emphasized.