“Costume Art” was the title for the 2026 Met Gala’s theme. Each year, the world’s top influencers, actors, musicians, and designers unite for the grandest fashion show in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, showcasing their stylists’ talent and dominating social media for the weeks to come. Past themes of the Met Gala centered around glamour, historical fiction, or fantasy; however, this year’s theme stood out, especially in a world where art is increasingly endangered.

AI presents a looming threat to creativity and art.  In our current era of technology, AI harbors the ability to generate “art” in a matter of seconds, with the writing of a prompt being the only human interaction required. Computer-made pieces are now often preferred over those crafted by humans because of these new technological advancements and their appeal of being “faster, “easier,” and “cheaper.”

So why is it important that a fashion show illuminates the true meaning of art? The theme of “costume art” pushes against the suppression of human-made work because every look at the gala was meticulously crafted by the hands of real designers, not computers.  The Met Gala’s appeal always surrounds the spectacle, but this year’s theme forces the viewers, attendants, and designers to look further than the eye-grabbing designs and into the real, truest meaning of human-made masterpieces. 

In the way that the Met Gala is deeper than a mere display of the rich’s success, art goes so much further than just an array of colors on a sheet of paper or an item of clothing. From cave paintings to Renaissance murals to modern abstract work, art plays a profound role in human history. Renaissance man Leonardo da Vinci would marvel at the computer’s invention, yet roll in his grave at AI’s stampede on human creation. 

The Met Gala, the epitome of influential fashion itself, reinforces this idea through their theme of repelling from AI’s influence and returning into the hands of art’s most irreplaceable creator: humans. As much as AI can give to humanity, it will take the same amount, if not more. Art is meant to stay human, and thanks to such significant events like the Met Gala, it will stay in the hands of real people.