The 2017 Met Gala will honor Japanese designer Rei Kawakubo

The Costume Institute Benefit or Met Gala is one of the highlights of the New York entertainment scene. This year’s Comme des Garçons-themed fête will be hosted by Katy Perry, Pharrell Williams and Anna Wintour editor-in-chief of Vogue magazine. It will honor groundbreaking Japanese designer Rei Kawakubo. Some of the world’s biggest star will gather at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 1 to kick off the festivities. Supermodel Gisele Bundchen and New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, her husband, will serve as two of the event’s co-chairs. Ambassador Caroline Kennedy and Rei Kawakubo will also be honorary co-chairs.

The 74-year-old Rei Kawakubo founded the Comme des Garçons label in 1973. Andrew Bolton curator of the Costume Institute called Rei Kawakubo “one of the most important and influential designers of the past forty years,” Bolton said “she has defined the aesthetics of our time.” Known for her ‘anti-fashion’ style, Kawakubo’s work challenged the traditional conventions of fashion and beauty. The 2017 Costume Institute exhibition called “Rei Kawakubo / Comme des Garçons: Art of the In-Between,” will run from May 4 until September 4. Her garments will be arranged by contrasting themes including male/female, East/West and past/present.

The event brings together the most influential names in fashion, entertainment, sports and business. This year has unique significance because it’s the first time since the Yves Saint Laurant exhibit in 1983 that a living designer will have a monograph at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art. Excitement is growing in anticipation of what the celebrities will wear. Their outfits usually match the gala’s theme.

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