Men at the Met Gala are notorious for showing up in a black tuxedo (maybe daring a brooch if they’re feeling dangerous) and leaving all the pageantry to the women. However, this year, the Met Gala is literally begging men to try. The dress code, Tailored for You, personally addresses their lacklustre efforts and gives them the opportunity to discover the intricate history of male fashion.
If you are not familiar with the Met Gala, it is a fundraiser attended by high-profile guests, taking place annually on the first Monday of May at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Tailored for You is inspired by the Costume Institute’s spring exhibition, Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.
Male fashion is seen as boring and uninspired. Superfine takes as its subject the dandy, a man who gives exaggerated thought to his appearance but who is often mocked, despite him being essential to male identity. Superfine reasserts him. It examines Black dandyism, and how the Black dandies found expression and resistance through their clothing. The Met Gala co-chairs (who can be seen as our modern-day dandies), A$AP Rocky, Pharrell Williams, Lewis Hamilton and Colman Domingo, are expanding the boundaries of how men express themselves through fashion.
Pharrell Williams defines dandyism as “a set of rules and standards…that reflect a certain sophistication and well-travelled taste. For Black people to hit that mark or exceed it, and be consistent with it, is a matter of pride. And consistency garners respect”. Superfine presents the consideration that the Black dandies had for their clothing, tracing three centuries of Black dandyism in the Atlantic diaspora. In societies that sought to define the Black man for themselves, the Black dandy was able to tell his own story through his style. Take the Black dandies of the Civil Rights Movement, who, through their refined, tailored suits, challenged stereotypes of Black men. Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton expresses his “hope [that Superfine] allows [Black men] to show that we have ownership of our identity, how we see ourselves and how we see one another, and how we use fashion to combat preconceived notions with humanity and dignity”.
Fashion has always been political. Many have criticised the Met Gala for appearing out of touch, as it displays wealth and pomp in the background of a world stricken by suffering. Some have even compared it to the elaborate fashion of Panem in The Hunger Games (a book series by Suzanne Collins). In Panem, fashion is weaponised against the poor, in order to distinguish the rich and to distract from the atrocities that take place. Yet, Superfine shows that the Met Gala is becoming more self-aware. By connecting with the roots of fashion, the Met Gala is paying its dues to the Black dandies who paved the way for Black men. It presents the Black dandy as a force to be reckoned with, enhancing his visibility and eminence. It is shining a light on something that, in the past, such institutions would have sought to distract us from. So, whilst some manipulate fashion to be oppressive, others wield it as an act of defiance. It is not the clothing itself which prompts meaning, but the people and their histories who wear it, and prioritising the Black dandy sends an important message – that marginalised identities deserve this recognition.
Superfine will have twelve sections, “each representing a characteristic that defines the style, such as Champion, Respectability, Heritage, Beauty, and Cosmopolitanism”. It will display garments and paintings to show the diversity of Black dandyism and the intersectionality of fashion and art. A$AP Rocky is inspired by the Black dandies of the past, present and even future, “Louis Armstrong, Frank Lucas, his father, Malcolm X, the members of Dipset. Even his sons come up”. Black dandyism carries with it community and interconnectedness. Pharrell Williams tells us that this is indeed the importance of this year’s Met Gala; “We’ve got to invest in each other. We’ve got to connect with each other, because it’s going to take everybody to coalesce the force of Black and brown genius into one strong, reliable force. It’s our turn.” This Met Gala is going to be a historic evening, breaking down gender and racial constructs through fashion.
Superfine celebrates Black excellence through the stylish, distinguished and resistant Black dandy. As A$AP Rocky puts it, “I’m from Harlem, we showed ya’ll how to do this”. Expect lots of menswear at this Met Gala, as the contribution that the Black dandies made is rightfully honoured. The Met Gala wants to remind men that fashion is a powerful indulgence, that it has meaning. As Colman Domingo puts it, “You need love. You need art. You need all these things in order to do the work you’re doing, whatever work that is”. Fashion, as a form of expression and resistance, is necessary in this turbulent world.