Anok Yai’s look features molten bronze skin undertones, a hand-sculpted metallic prosthetic wig by Sasha Glasser, and a custom diamond necklace to complement a Balenciaga Black Madonna hoodie. Photo credit: Anok Yai/Instagram
When the Met Gala’s theme is “Fashion is Art” and the dress code is “The Art of Costume,” guests are expected to dress carefully. What Anok Yai went a few steps further on Monday night. The South Sudanese-American model arrived at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in a look that belonged in the very exhibition the night was celebrating.
She wore a custom Balenciaga dress Pierpaolo Piccioli — an all-black silk taffeta, mermaid silhouette, sculptural hooded collar so voluminous that it creates what the team described as “negative visual space” around her face, turning her head and bust into what reads in photos as a freestanding sculpted bust. Black gloves like opera. Diamond necklace. Styling by Carlos Nazario.
South Sudanese-American model Anok Yai interprets the Costume Art theme in a pleated Balenciaga dress in black silk taffeta with an architectural hooded collar and matching opera-like gloves. The look, styled by Carlos Nazario, creates a statuesque silhouette. Photo credit: Anok Yai/Instagram
Her skin was treated by a make-up artist Sheika Daley with molten gold and bronze undertones to achieve a metallic finish. Down her face, traces of tears like wax – a reference to Mater DolorosaOur Lady of Sorrows. Her hair is a hand-formed prosthetic wig Sasha Glassershaped to resemble carved bronze waves. Glasser said the inspiration came from a sculpture he saw at the Met last November: “The story behind Anoka’s hair started last November when I happened to be at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I was shooting photos for a different makeup there when I saw this sculpture called ‘Leda and the Swan.’ Michel Anguier. I loved my hair so much that I hoped one day I would get the chance to sculpt it for makeup. So when I had to sculpt it for the Met Gala, Anok Yai and Balenciaga, it couldn’t have been better!”
Theatrical beauty details of Anok Yai’s appearance at the 2026 Met Gala include traces of prosthetic tears that reference the Mater Dolorosa. Her Sheike Daley makeup uses metallic bronze finishes to mimic a gallery bust, paired with sculptural hair waves and a flawless metallic complexion. Photo credit: Anok Yai/Instagram
Yai on the concept: “When I first learned about the Met Gala theme this year, I knew I wanted to blur the line between being human and being art—a bronze statue caught in motion.” On what it meant: “After our first fitting, he told me his idea for me to be the Black Lady. I immediately conjured images of the Weeping Statues of Sicily. For us, this was not just a look, this was a message of hope, a reflection of the times we live in and a representation of the difficulty of bearing unprecedented pain with grace in times of trouble — especially in this climate.”
She finished with, “I know the idea was crazy and time was tight. But look what we did!”
Really, look at what they did.
