"Titled simply Costume Art, the exhibition will reportedly pair 200 artworks from the museum's various collections with 200 garments and accessories. But the most important information about the show in The Met's announcement appears below the description, in bigger and bolder font: "The exhibition is made possible by Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos," with additional support provided by Saint Laurent and Condé Nast."
"The Costume Institute is certainly capable of it - Superfine: Tailoring Black Stylewas a strong exhibition despite its being sponsored by Louis Vuitton. But money always comes with strings, and Jeff Bezos is one of the worst people you could be attached to. Indeed, The Met's exhibition description and press release might say pretty much nothing about what'll actually be in the show, but something tells me that certain topics will be suspiciously absent: explorations of the global supply chain, including environmental impact"
The Met's spring 2026 Costume Institute show, titled Costume Art, pairs 200 artworks from various collections with 200 garments and accessories and claims to "reveal the inherent relationship between clothing and the body." The exhibition is funded by Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos, with additional support from Saint Laurent and Condé Nast, and will inaugurate the 12,000-square-foot Condé M. Nast galleries. Sponsorship by wealthy donors raises concerns that the show will omit critiques of global supply chains, environmental impacts, sweatshop and child labor, and the concentration of wealth and power shaping objects and luxury design aesthetics. Past Costume Institute shows have succeeded despite luxury sponsorship, but corporate funding often influences content.
Read at Hyperallergic
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