Inside the 2016 Met Gala: Behind the Scenes With the Museum's Curator

The curator of the Metropolitan Museum of Arts Costume Institute takes E! behind the scenes of the iconic building

By Samantha Schnurr May 02, 2016 10:23 PMTags
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It's one of the fashion industry's most anticipated events of the year—and one of the most unpredictable. 

Though the Metropolitan Museum of Arts Costume Institute's benefit arrives every year like clockwork, nearly nothing is repetitive. The guest list shifts, the theme is consistently fresh and the gowns are always evolving.

"The gala is amazing. It's incredible to be in a room with so many people that you've seen on the big screen or on TV and so many people that you respect," the museum's curator, Andrew Bolton told E!'s Catt Sadler. "It's not just actresses—it's politicians, it's sports personalities."

As one of the most photographed evenings of the year, the event often lends itself to history-making moments. Rihanna and her 2015 canary-yellow Guo Pei couture gown will live in infamy on both "unforgettable gowns" galleries and egg memes alike. Sarah Jessica Parker and her yearly headpieces—the 2015 flame-inspired by Philip Treacy in particular—are just as memorable. 

For Bolton, the celebrity sightings inside the building are equally some of his fondest as the museum's curator. 

"There was one year I saw [Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen] in the Greek and Roman galleries and next to the sculptures and they were more beautiful than the sculptures," he remembered. 

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In addition to iconic moments for Hollywood's brightest stars, the evening is also a showcase of revolutionary design. This year's theme, "Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology," will be one of the event's most innovative yet. 

"When you walk around the show, it's really about hidden technology, so technologies that aren't really visible to the human eye. It's not really lasers or robots and so it's interesting to see how people are going to relate to them," he continued. 

Tonight, clothing is expected to converge with technology in ways some have never even imagined. As the exhibit demonstrated, a couture gown can be made of virtually anything—from thousands and thousands of sequins layered to emulate the look of fur to something as manufactured as liquid rubber. 

"I really believe that fashion is an art form," he concluded. "I really believe that fashion is so important to our culture, so it's really incredible that really people from all walks of life are coming here to celebrate fashion."

Watch E!'s Live From The Red Carpet 2016 Met Gala special starting at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on Monday, May 2nd
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