The Met Gala 2023 Theme is Out

Image via @unsplash

If you keep up with fashion and celebrity culture, or have been on the Internet these past few years, you probably know what the Met Gala is. And if you do, you probably know what a mess the Met has been recently. Take last year for example. There was tons of criticism on how many of the guests fumbled a relatively easy theme (not that it was the best theme ever…but come on), and how the classiness and creativity of the Met Gala has been trickling away before our very eyes. 

So, naturally, what better way to fan the flames than to announce a terrible and controversial theme for next year’s Met Gala? And spoiler alert: that’s exactly what happened. Recently announced, next year’s theme for the Met Gala is “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty.” Which is an incredibly lame theme for a number of reasons.

Karl Lagerfeld was a legendary fashion designer, an insane talent and creative genius in his field. BUT… he was also a legendary dick and a terrible person down to his pretentious core. He was fatphobic, homophobic, racist, misogynistic – you name it, he had a controversy around it. So it doesn’t make much sense why the Met would choose to celebrate and honor such a controversial figure.

The Met’s popularity and publicity reach beyond just the world of high fashion, and there is a lot of cultural influence and emphasis that goes into this event and the outfits worn. Take Quannah Chasinghorse, for example, one of the few people who has been slaying at recent Met Galas, wearing gorgeous outfits that pay homage and respect to her indigenous heritage. And to be honest, that’s what the Met Gala should be: a chance to celebrate culture and creativity. But with the announcement of the 2023 theme, how is anyone who isn’t stick skinny, straight, and white going to celebrate? 

This certainly isn’t a problem exclusive to the Met Gala. In a variety of industries, it feels like we’re going backwards, when we should be making efforts to improve and be better than we have in past decades. As we near the end of 2022, we at Jerk think it’s time for a better Met Gala, and a better arts and culture industry at large.