Kim Kardashian doesn’t mess around when it comes to making a major statement at the Met Gala — and this year’s event, which is themed “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion,” is no exception.
The 40-year-old Skims founder arrived at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on Monday, September 13, and basically shut down the whole shebang. She hit the red carpet wearing an all-black Balenciaga outfit that covered her face, body, and well, everything.
If that ensemble looks familiar, that’s because it bares a striking resemblance to what she wore to estranged husband Kanye West’s second Donda listening party on August 7. And just hours ahead of the 2021 Met Gala, she posted another photo in the elusive ensemble to Instagram, tagging Balenciaga creative director Demna Gvasalia in the post. According to Vogue, West, 44, helped create the look with Gvasalia, who accompanied Kardashian on the carpet.
The reality star, who is currently in the process of giving KKW Beauty a refresh, has established herself as an influential force in the makeup space, yet she didn’t get glammed up for this year’s event. All that fans were able to see in her covered-up Balenciaga ensemble was her floor-length ponytail.
This year’s soirée, which emphasized the influence of American designers, may be polarizing fans for its elusive nature, but she’s showing her support for West ahead of his tenth studio album release. And let’s not forget that she’s had her fair share of show stopping moments through the years.
Turn back the clock to 2013, which was the Keeping Up With the Kardashian alum’s first-ever Met Gala, for example. At the time, the lawyer-to-be was West’s plus one and was pregnant with the pair’s first daughter, North.
Kardashian showed up in a floral print Givenchy gown that became the butt of some not-so-nice memes, comparing her to everything from a couch to Mrs. Doubtfire. She later revealed in a video with Vogue that she “was crying the whole way home” as a result of the social media frenzy.
In 2014, she played it safe to walk the steps, opting for a black and navy Lanvin gown that was sophisticated and chic. She had a red carpet win the following year though, stunning in a beaded Roberto Cavalli gown with a feather train.
For the 2016 event, which was themed Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology, she hit a home run in the style department. She worked with Balmain to create a metallic silver stunner. In the two years that followed, the reality star and mom of four kept her looks on the sleeker side, opting for subdued options that were stunning but not necessarily statement-making.
She wore a skin-tight white Vivienne Westwood number in 2017 for the Red Kawakubo/Comme des Garcons: Art of the In-Between theme. And in 2018, she donned a gilded gold Versace number, when the theme was Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination.
For Camp: Notes on Fashion, Kardashian brought out all the stops though. She stunned in a wet-looking Mugler number complete with a corset that cinched her waist — big time.
Sign up for Us Weekly's free, daily newsletter and never miss breaking news or exclusive stories about your favorite celebrities, TV shows and more!
She upped the ante even more this year — and we just can’t get enough! To check out her look from every angle, keep scrolling!
