How Emma Chamberlain's Met Gala 2026 Gown Took 40 Hours of Hand-Painted Artistry

Influencer and entrepreneur Emma Chamberlain made a striking entrance at the 2026 Met Gala, wearing a custom Mugler gown that appeared to come to life with swirls of acrylic ink and glossy paint. Each step Chamberlain took seemed to leave a prismatic trail of color behind her.

The gown, designed by Mugler creative director Miguel Castro Freitas, was transformed into a head-turning spectacle by artist Anna Deller-Yee, who hand-painted the entire piece—from hem to neckline—using real fine art supplies. The meticulous process required 40 hours of painting, four days of drying time, and a six-foot-long shipping crate to transport the finished gown from Paris to New York City.

The 2026 Met Gala Theme: 'Fashion is Art'

The Met Gala, held on May 4, 2026, embraced the theme “Fashion is Art”, inspired by the Met’s exhibition “Costume Art”. This exhibition celebrated the “centrality of the dressed body” through depictions and interpretations of the human form. Several celebrities interpreted the theme by recreating famous artworks, including:

• Lauren Sánchez Bezos as John Singer Sargent’s Madame X
• Gracie Abrams as Gustav Klimt’s Portrait of Adele Block-Bauer I
• Madonna as The Temptation of St. Anthony, Fragment II

Chamberlain, however, took a different approach. Instead of reinterpreting a single artwork, her gown drew inspiration from a broad range of Impressionist and Expressionist works, focusing on visible brushstrokes and atmospheric effects. The result was a wearable canvas where every detail of Deller-Yee’s craft became a statement in its own right.

[Photo: Theo Wargo/FilmMagic/Getty Images]

Anna Deller-Yee: From Print Design to Met Gala Masterpiece

Deller-Yee began her career in 2021 as a print designer for the Italian apparel brand Marni, where she specialized in hand-painted prints. Her work spans creating designs that can be digitally scanned to painting directly onto finished garments, depending on the project.

Her unique, analog process has earned her global recognition, leading to collaborations with brands like Nike, artists such as Nicki Minaj (for her 2024 Met Gala outfit, designed in collaboration with Marni), and even Anna Wintour. Today, she is represented by the creative agency Hugo Marie as part of its in-house artist bureau.

Collaborating with Mugler and Miguel Castro Freitas

For her second-ever Met Gala project, Deller-Yee worked closely with Castro Freitas, whom she has collaborated with since 2024. She recalls their evolving partnership:

“When Miguel arrived [at Mugler], we started to work together on prints, and the work became more and more elaborate, and also more and more intimate, in terms of really sitting down with him and understanding his vision for the brand.”

She received a message from the Mugler team about the opportunity to collaborate on a Met Gala gown, which she described as a significant leap of trust in her artistic vision.