Hot Topic
🔥 Full coverage and conversation on the Met Gala
Last night, Devon Aoki attended her first Met Gala wearing a Y2K-inspired dress designed by Jeremy Scott. The gala's theme this year is "Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty."
Given the deep and, arguably, iconic history between Devon, Jeremy, and Karl, it's especially fitting that Devon's first Met Gala honors the legacy of Karl and that Jeremy designed her dress.
Hot Topic
Let's chat about all things Met Gala
See our Met Gala Discussions
Jeremy — who recently stepped down as the creative director of Moschino after 10 years — founded his eponymous label in 1997, and Karl quickly became a fan. Karl subsequently helped to increase Jeremy's profile in the fashion industry and later named Jeremy the only designer who could succeed him at Chanel.
(Devon also attended the opening — here she is with Jeremy.)
While working on his third (all-white) collection in the late '90s, Jeremy discovered a photo of Devon in The Face magazine and decided to cast her in his show, where she made her runway debut at 13 years old.
After debuting, Devon quickly became a fashion icon. By 16, Devon succeeded Naomi Campbell as the face of Versace. By 17, she began walking for Chanel.
Karl, who served as the creative director of Chanel from 1983 until his death in 2019, would famously close his Chanel couture shows with a "Chanel bride" — his choice "it girl" supermodel dressed in an exquisite bridal look. By 1999, Karl selected Devon as a Chanel bride, and she began closing out Chanel couture shows.
That same year, Devon told the Independent, "I always thought models had to fit a certain mold. I never thought I had what it takes. I'm too small, and my look's pretty weird. I don't fit the status quo. I suppose that's a good thing. Not everyone's 5'10" and stick thin. There's more diversity now. It's OK to be shorter and look sort of different."
Over the years, Devon cemented her legacy as a supermodel and continued to walk for Jeremy Scott and Chanel, even walking the Moschino runway for Jeremy in 2016 (at 33 years old) after not having walked in a decade.
Now it's only fitting for the two to come together again at this year's Met Gala to honor Karl, "a man who championed us both," as described by Jeremy.
When speaking with Vogue, Jeremy revealed exactly how he came up with Devon's Y2K-inspired dress (and his complementary tux), taking inspiration from Karl's iconic designs and his own history with Devon.
Right off the bat, Jeremy took inspiration from Karl's well-known use of black and white throughout his career to determine the color palette of the look.
"I then thought about one iconic Chloé dress he did with black jet-beaded trompe-l’oeil folds," he said, referencing Karl's Fall 1983 Ready To Wear collection for Chloé, including this one...
...and this one.
Jeremy then combined Karl's black-and-white color scheme and Chloé dress with a white, winged leather minidress Devon wore during his own label's Fall 2001 show in Paris — the last time the three of them were together.
While BuzzFeed can't publish the image, you can see Devon in the winged minidress here.
"I took my iconic wing and came back to it, fusing it with these nods from Karl for both Devon's gown and my tuxedo jacket," he explained, and the fittings proved to be emotional for the pair, who attribute their close bond to growing up in fashion together.
"Trying on the dress was a cathartic moment for both of us, considering our time together in the industry from babies to now," Devon said.
She also described her relationship with Karl as one of her life's greatest gifts. Echoing her sentiments from more than two decades ago, Devon said: "As a young teenager, he made me feel seen, loved, and special. He plucked me from this obscure place of not being a standout to being his muse and being celebrated."
"It was really such an incredible thing for me as a young biracial girl, [who was] shorter than most of the other girls with untraditional looks," she concluded.
What do you think of Devon's (and Jeremy's) Met Gala look? Do you recognize any of the inspirations behind it? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!
Check out more API-centered content by exploring how BuzzFeed is celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month! Of course, the content doesn't end after May. Follow BuzzFeed’s A*Pop on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube to keep up with our latest API content year-round.
Hot Topic
🔥 Full coverage and conversation on the Met Gala
Share This Article
We see you lurking 👀
Join a Met Gala conversation instead
See the Discussions