‘Superfine’ Brings Radiant Black Style to the Met

‘Superfine’ Brings Radiant Black Style to the Met

It’s probably too much to show up at one of these Costume Institute shows looking for the object that ties the whole thing together. Just because they’re about clothes doesn’t mean they have to do what a smart outfit does. And yet damn if I didn’t find a single object …

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Inside the Most Politically Charged Met Gala in Years

Inside the Most Politically Charged Met Gala in Years

Follow our live coverage of the 2025 Met Gala red carpet. Last October, when the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute announced its next fashion show, “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” the political landscape looked very different. Kamala Harris, the first female vice president and the first Black woman ever to …

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The ‘Monstrous Beauty’ of Pretty Porcelains at the Met

The ‘Monstrous Beauty’ of Pretty Porcelains at the Met

The dragon lady, the courtesan, the submissive beauty — these enduring stereotypes of Asian and Southeast Asian femininity circulated in Europe and America centuries before the vast majority of Westerners had ever laid eyes on a real flesh-and-blood woman from those parts of the world. A major, and maybe surprising, …

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Merle Oberon, a Hollywood Star With a Career-Ending Secret

Merle Oberon, a Hollywood Star With a Career-Ending Secret

The Academy Awards always bring with them a series of firsts. First Black man to win for best costume design (Paul Tazewell). First openly trans person to be nominated for an Oscar (Karla Sofía Gascón). First Latvian film to win an Oscar (“Flow”). But one first that’s often overlooked is …

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