Earlier this month the Metropolitan Museum of Art held its annual Costume Institute Gala , one of New York’s top fashion and beauty industry events.  As with previous years, the roster of the 725  (mostly) elegantly-dressed attendees of the 2010 gala reads like an Academy Awards / Grammy guest list and includes fashion industry VIPs from around the world. Everyone from Oprah Winfrey, to Lady Gaga, Vera Wang, Donatella Versace, and more attended the bash.

Each year the Met’s Costume Institute presents an exhibition that becomes the theme for the gala. This year’s exhibition, “American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity” could be seen along the venue’s mural-clad walls, against which curator Andrew Bolton placed exceptional American pieces created between 1890 and the 1940s.

Gala guests had their own ideas of how American style can be defined. Designer Vera Wang, wearing a long white dress, stated,

“I think it’s confidence.”

Italian Vogue editor Franca Sozzani, wearing a beige silk satin Valentino dress, said, “To me, American fashion is Charlie James.”

“American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity” runs through August 15, 2010 and examines American women from 1890 through the 1940s (hence the decor of the gala) and looks at how these women have influenced our perceptions of the modern world. The exhibition (which includes pieces not publicly seen for the past 30 years) harnesses the resources of the newly established Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at the Met and truly celebrates American fashion and style during a period where the changing world influenced creativity and led to innovations in design, style and fashion.

Read more about the exhibition HERE

See what else is going on at the Met HERE

Read the entire NY Times article associated with this post HERE