Exploring the irony of the Met Gala’s ‘Garden of Time’ theme

As the world’s elite no doubt plan to tap into the theme of a beautiful garden, we can likely expect many Met Gala guests to dress in garments adorned with various types of flora and fauna.

What’s immediately ironic is that this theme doesn’t exactly reflect our environmental situation as of late. In fact, our planet has never faced more degradation.

The fourth global mass coral bleaching event is taking place as we speak, deforestation levels are increasing, and greenhouse gas emissions continue to climb despite pledges aimed at their reduction being made at various climate summits.

Humans are ‘cutting their flowers,’ engaging in a rate of environmental destruction that the planet has never seen before. The world elite are major contributors, often opting for private jets and lavish lifestyles.

The approaching mob in The Garden of Time could very well be likened to the threat of climate change, as well as the stronger and more unpredictable storms, subsequent flash flooding, and raging wildfires that will come as a result.

As the Met Gala’s attendees celebrate the beauty of the natural world through fashion, we should remember that many of them (think the Kardashians and other celebrities who own brands alongside their entertainment career) boast a ginormous environmental footprint resulting from the production, packaging, and shipping of their branded products.

Not to mention, the vast majority of these celebrities will arrive in New York City via private jets that emit many times more carbon emissions than traditional flights.

The route of Taylor Swift’s two private jets in 2023. pic.twitter.com/IZ3xNbvjXR

— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) April 25, 2024

These are luxuries not afforded to us mere mortals, who will watch the Met Gala’s red-carpet arrivals from flats we’re being priced out of due to growing inflation.

In this vein, parallels between the rich couple and the mob in Garden of Time and the world’s elite and the rest of today’s society are stark.

Income inequality has continually worsened over the last few decades in the United States, so much so that ‘America’s richest 1 percent of households averaged 104 times as much income as the bottom 20 percent in 2020’, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

In other words, the rich are getting much richer while the poor get poorer.

While the Met Gala is an exciting time for celebrities and fans of fashion alike, the theme might seem a bit too on the nose in light of all of the environmental and social injustice that’s taking place today.

It will be interesting to see which celebrities interpret the event’s theme this way, perhaps incorporating environmental messaging into their outfits or pulling archival pieces to promote sustainable fashion and consumption.

With the Met only a few days away, we won’t have to wait long to find out.