11 Dandy-inspired looks we want to see at the Met Gala

This year's Met Gala is just around the corner (set your alarms for Monday, May 5!) and the internet is already abuzz with guesses on who will attend, what viral moments are in store and most importantly, what our favourite celebs will wear on the red carpet.

For the uninitiated, the Met Gala 2025 theme is “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.” According to Vogue, it's inspired by Monica L. Miller’s 2009 book, Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity, and the exhibit will explore the “style of Black men in the context of dandyism, from the 18th century through the present.”

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By Charlie Teather and Rosana Lai

What does that mean exactly? Well, dandy style or dandyism first became a term in the 18th and 18th centuries around the Regency and Victorian eras and is characterised by a meticulous attention to detail and sophisticated style, which often translated to crisp suits and on-point pattern-clashing. Think: slim-fitting suits in fine materials accessorised with delicate details like handkerchiefs and cufflinks paired in a way that showed off the wearer's sartorial fluency and distinguished tastes. It was also a way to demonstrate someone's individuality.

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An approach to dressing as opposed to a prescriptive set of rules, dandyism first came to describe men, but it is not limited to a gender. Take Coco Chanel, for example, who dared to defy the norms of female dressing in the ‘20s and adopted a more androgynous way of dressing. Marlene Dietrich, too, was the female dandy or “quaintrelle” of her time, whose choice of masculine shapes challenged societal norms of the '30s.

When it comes to modern female dandies, Diane Keaton, Janelle Monae and Tilda Swinton come to mind, not only for their ability to carry a sharp suit, but also for how they use fashion to make a statement. These are women who dress for themselves.