Behind the Glam: 7 Designers Who Dominated Met Gala 2025

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The Met Gala 2025 edition stood as a truly thrilling and culturally vital moment in the annals of fashion. Taking place on May 5th at New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, this year’s gala was a vibrant exploration of the theme “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.” This theme was a heartfelt and dynamic tribute to Black dandyism, a refined and singular style movement that has shaped global fashion for generations. It put the spotlight on the strength of self-expression via fashion and honored the groundbreaking Black individuals who have shaped the realms of fashion, tailoring, and cultural identity.

The celebrities on the red carpet were definitely the main attraction, but the real magic of the night came from the brilliant designers. Both established fashion icons and fresh new faces showed off their incredible talent, all while celebrating the event’s theme. They did this through breathtaking outfits that pushed the limits of design, looking both to the past and future of Black style. This piece will dive into the designers who really stood out at the Met Gala 2025, their impact on fashion, and the way they brought the night’s theme to vibrant life.

Designers Who Shaped the Night

1. Ruth E. Carter: The Queen of Cinematic Costume Design

As soon as Ruth E. Carter emerges onto the scene, you realize that history is in the making. The Oscar-winning costume designer from Black Panther translated her signature style onto the Met Gala red carpet. Carter’s designs have an ease to blend history and culture seamlessly so that each piece has stories told in fabric. At the 2025 Met Gala, her designs reflected upon the theme by honoring Black identity through artfully designed outfits, in much the same way that she has throughout her illustrious career.

Carter’s efforts on the Met Gala involved a detailed, kingly gown from African heritage that had bold hues, geometric patterns, and conventional fabrics reworked for the contemporary era. Her groundbreaking tailoring honored the global spread of Black fashion, whereas her utilization of cultural allusions imparted added meaning to the evening beyond its role as merely a fashion event.

Carter has long employed costume design as a vehicle for the exploration of identity and history, and her Met Gala work was a testament to her artistry, cementing her as a chief designer who has influenced not just film but also the story of Black elegance and dandyism.

Photo credit: TikTok

2. Vera Wang: Timeless Elegance Meets Bold Style

Vera Wang is all about high-end sophistication, and her appearance at the 2025 Met Gala was no exception. Famous for her elegant wedding dresses and couture lines, Wang added a sense of sophistication to the night with a beautiful black-and-gold dress that had both the grandeur of history and the sensibilities of the present. Her designs, regularly gracing the world’s top red carpets, were well-suited for the Met Gala theme, where traditional tailoring and classy beauty were the order of the day.

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Her dress was a testament to meticulous detailing, highlighting her capability to combine traditional cuts with modernism. The outfit had crisp tailoring, rich fabrics, and a dramatic flair. By using colors that were culturally linked with riches and power, i.e., dark black and gold-rich, Wang resonated with Black dandyism and the use of fashion in identity, resistance, and self-expression.

Photo credit: E! News

3. Thom Browne: Avant-Garde Tailoring for the Bold and Brave

Wherever Thom Browne is, you know there will be fashion limits being stretched. With his deconstructed approach to menswear and avant-garde interpretation of menswear, Browne designed an unprecedented piece for the Met Gala red carpet that incorporated both Black dandyism and modern tailoring elements. His design defied conventional male form but remained faithful to the theme’s tribute to personal style and elegance.

Browne’s Met Gala collection combined assertive architectural lines with ethereal fabrics, projecting an air of elegance that also came across as fun and transgressive. His combination of cutting-edge, structured suits over flowing fabrics made a daring declaration regarding the liberty to toy with gendered tailoring a vital component in investigating Black dandyism and fashion. The appearance reflected the way that fashion can express self and the forceful declaration of defying cultural norms.

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4. Manish Malhotra: Fusing Eastern Glamour with Western Tailoring

Indian fashion designer Manish Malhotra has made a reputation for himself with delivering glamour and excess to all the collections that he creates, and his design contribution to the 2025 Met Gala did not disappoint. His stunning, elaborately embroidered creation for the Met Gala of 2025 showcased elements of old-school Indian fashion, such as elaborate beading and luscious silk textiles, accented with new-fashioned Western tailoring details. The outcome was an ensemble that commemorated the opulence of Eastern glamour and the finely tailored mode of Western dandyism.

Malhotra’s blending of cultures perfectly captured the international influence of Black dandyism, highlighting the interconnectivity of various styles worldwide. His focus on detail and appreciation of embroidery took the art of tailoring beyond mere attire to a work of art. For the Met Gala, Malhotra captured the convergence of history, culture, and fashion, honoring Black dandyism’s international influence.

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Photo credit: Reddit

5. Rahul Mishra: Sustainability and Craftsmanship as Art

Another Indian fashion designer Rahul Mishra gained recognition by designing clothing that tells a narrative, at times using aspects of sustainability, heritage, and craftsmanship. His work at the Met Gala was such a piece not just of beauty but also of sustainability and artisanal consciousness. Mishra’s design was a wearable work of art, adorned with hand-embroidered flowers, luxurious textures, and sustainable fabrics.

His process spoke to the spirit of Black dandyism, which has always been about self-expression, individuality, and resistance. Through the practice of eco-friendly methods and time-honored craft techniques, Mishra illustrated how the fashion world can celebrate its heritage without sacrificing the future. His process reminds us that tailoring and craftsmanship can move beyond the skin to express values of sustainability and cultural pride.

Photo credit: Pinterest

6. Iris Van Herpen: Technology Meets Tradition

Netherlands-based designer Iris Van Herpen is known for merging technology and fashion in new and innovative ways. Her Met Gala look reflected her expertise in the field of futuristic fashion as she employed 3D printing and new textile technology to develop a sculptural gown that pushed the limits of what can be achieved in the fashion world.

Van Herpen’s designs are famous for producing outfits that look like architectural buildings, and at the Met Gala, her outfit was no exception. The outfit was a futuristic take on dandyism, mixing sharp, geometric lines with flowing movement, honoring the concept of tailoring as an art form of self-expression. Van Herpen’s contribution showed how contemporary fashion and Black dandyism can meet with technology to produce something completely new and visionary.

Photo credit: Pinterest

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7. Prabal Gurung: Bold, Inclusive, and Empowering

Nepalese-American fashion designer Prabal Gurung is renowned for his bold and empowering yet inclusive designs. For the Met Gala, Gurung took on the theme of Black dandyism by designing an outfit that was a celebration of confidence and boldness. Strong, bold colors paired with clean tailoring reflected the strength and individuality that are at the heart of Black style.

Gurung’s work has always been a vehicle for social change, and his Met Gala look was no exception. The design called forth an admiration of diversity and celebrated the theme’s sense of freedom from traditional fashion norms. With his design, Gurung demonstrated how fashion can cross borders and raise voices, celebrating the rich, complex beauty of Black dandyism in contemporary context.

Photo credit: X

The Met Gala as a Platform for Black Dandyism

The Met Gala is not just a celebration of fashion but also a forceful cultural event in which fashion meets identity, history, and social movements. The theme of 2025, “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” provided an opportunity for designers to examine the influence of Black dandyism a style born out of resistance, elegance, and self-expression. By their revolutionary collections, such designers not just paid tribute to the theme but also highlighted the rich and multicultural traditions of Black fashion and tailoring.

For some, the Met Gala meant more than merely a red carpet affair it was an opportunity to express the resiliency, creativity, and power of Black culture through fashion. The fashion designers who partook in the event assisted in making the role of Black dandyism bigger, reminding everyone that fashion isn’t only a matter of dressing but also narratives, values, and histories encapsulated in clothing.

Photo credit: Fashion Times

FAQs

Q: What is Black dandyism and its relation to fashion?

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A: Black dandyism is a fashion and cultural phenomenon that emerged in the 18th century. It consists of elegance, uniqueness, and defiance of convention. Black dandyism has made a big impact on international fashion, offering a space for self-expression and leaving a lasting legacy on both formal and informal fashion.

Q: Which are some of the designers who adopted Black dandyism at the 2025 Met Gala?

A: Designers like Ruth E. Carter, Vera Wang, Thom Browne, Manish Malhotra, Rahul Mishra, Iris Van Herpen, and Prabal Gurung were some of those who adopted the theme of Black dandyism at the 2025 Met Gala. Their creative designs opened up both historical inspirations and contemporary tailoring.

Q: What was the main message of the Met Gala 2025 theme?

A: The theme “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” honored the cultural relevance of Black dandyism, examining how Black fashion has influenced global styles, impacted social movements, and remains a method of self-expression and resistance.

Photo credit: Tom + Lorenzo

Final Insights

The 2025 Met Gala was a defining moment in fashion, as fashion designers, celebrities, and the public united to honor the lasting legacy of Black dandyism. In their daring, inventive creations, these artists reasserted the enduring strength of tailoring, handcraft, and identity. It was not merely a celebration of fashion it was a strong reminder of the great influence of Black culture on the world.

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