The Metropolitan Museum of Art has announced the Met Gala’s spring 2024 theme, “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion,” inviting guests to experience the tactile and sensory elements of historical garments. The exhibition, opening at The Met Fifth Avenue on May 10, 2024 and running through September 2, 2024, will use nature as a metaphor to explore themes of rebirth and renewal within the context of the museum’s collection. The “Sleeping Beauties” theme will also inspire the star-studded Met Gala on May 6, 2024.

The exhibition will present approximately 250 fashion items spanning four centuries. The exhibition will immerse guests in a series of thematic galleries, each offering sensory interactions with the fashion on display. These fragile items, which can no longer be dressed on mannequins, will be displayed in special glass casings, allowing for a rare close-up view for viewers.

“The Met’s innovative spring 2024 Costume Institute exhibition will push the boundaries of our imagination and invite us to experience the multisensory facets of a garment, many of which get lost when entering a museum collection as an object,” said Max Hollein, The Met’s director and CEO. “‘Sleeping Beauties’ will heighten our engagement with these masterpieces of fashion by evoking how they feel, move, sound, smell, and interact when being worn, ultimately offering a deeper appreciation of the integrity, beauty, and artistic brilliance of the works on display.”

The Met Gala, known formally as The Costume Institute Benefit, will open the exhibition with a fundraising event. The celebrity-rich event provides essential support for the Costume Institute’s future exhibitions, acquisitions, and improvements to its facilities. The Met has collaborated with prominent photographer Nick Knight and SHOWstudio to visualize the 2024 exhibition.