If hoomans get to enjoy a night of fashion and glamor at The Met Gala, so will man’s best friend, at their very own fashion event!
On May 20, American Kennel Club (AKC) Museum of the Dog hosted the very first Pet Gala, regarded as “Pet Fashion’s Biggest Night”, with pet fashion couturier Anthony Rubio.
The now-annual pet fashion event featured 18 dogs wearing designs similar to what celebrities wore at the 2024 Met Gala replicated by Anthony Rubio.
The Pet Gala featured a 21-foot red carpet, a flower wall grand entrance, and different flower stations around the venue — a nod to the recently concluded Met Gala’s “The Garden of Time” dress code.
Rubio tells AP News, “I want people to understand that we’re not making fun of the Met Gala. We’re not mimicking the Met Gala.”
“We’re elevating and appraising and appreciating the wonderful designs that were presented at the Met Gala by the most talented designers of the world,” he continues.
Like its hooman counterpart, the Pet Gala serves as a fundraising event. The tickets cost $300 and all proceeds will benefit the AKC Museum of the Dog, “which houses and maintains the world’s leading collection of dog art.”
The most talked about celebrity 2024 Met Gala looks were also seen during the event. AP News reports, “Daffodil the Pomeranian as Jennifer Lopez, Kimba the chihuahua in one of Zendaya’s looks, Miley-Jo the Chorkie as Cardi B and Bastian the terrier as Colman Domingo.”
Rubio said, “The designers for The Met Gala have months to create their looks for celebrities to shine on the red carpet. I have two weeks to recreate them and for dogs.”
While Rubio was able to recreate some of the most iconic 2024 Met Gala looks, he said that the dogs’ comfort and safety is his top priority, and he welcomes this as “a challenge he’s always up for”.
“When I design for my Fashion Week runway shows, it’s all my aesthetic. For The Pet Gala, I have to figure out how to translate garments worn by humans onto our four-legged stars,” Rubio explains.
The pet fashion couturier also told AP News that the outfits he designed for the dogs will be housed at the Museum of the Dog for the month of June.