Madonna brought Gothic fashion in a black Saint Laurent gown by Anthony Vaccarello at the 2026 Met Gala red carpet in New York City on Monday.

Madonna’s outfit featured a cornflower chiffon veil attached to the top of her black hat shaped like a ship. The long fabric coated the carpet steps, secured by an army of seven women dressed in colorful lace slips and white veils over their eyes. In her hands, the “Vogue” singer held what appeared to be a French horn. She accessorized with platform boots, opera gloves and a pendant necklace.

The moody aesthetic of her fashion was matched by a witchy hair transformation, which saw her ditch her signature blond for inky long ends like so many other A-listers on the carpet. The wig, embellished with braided loops, was crafted by Merria Dearman in collaboration with hairstylist Eugene Souleiman.

“The look was rooted in an obscure feminist artist. It was surreal, textural, and emotionally driven rather than literal. From the beginning, it was never about perfection. It was about feeling,” Dearman said in an official statement.

Madonna’s makeup was comprised of bleached brows, babydoll blush bleeding beneath her eyes, spider-y bottom lashes and rosy lips. While she’s been known to work with artist Aaron Smith Henrikson, the visionary has not yet been credited for her Monday night aesthetic. WWD has contacted Henrikson for a comment.

Madonna has one of the longest histories of any celebrity at the Met Gala. She first attended in 1997 in a patterned Versace look for the gala honoring the late designer Gianni Versace, then returned in 2009 in a Louis Vuitton ensemble with a Stephen Jones bunny-eared headpiece. She became a regular through the 2010s, attending in 2011 in Stella McCartney, 2013 in a studded Givenchy look for the “Punk: Chaos to Couture” theme, 2015 in a Moschino graffiti dress, 2016 in a black lace Givenchy gown, 2017 in a camouflage Moschino creation, and 2018 in a Jean Paul Gaultier gown, during which she also performed at the event. After a seven-year hiatus, she returned to the 2025 gala in a Tom Ford suit designed by Haider Ackermann.

The 2026 Met Gala took place on Monday at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. This year’s exhibition, “Costume Art,” celebrated fashion as an art form, with a dress code of “Fashion Is Art.” The event was co-chaired by Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, and Anna Wintour, with Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sénchez Bezos serving as honorary chairs. The annual benefit raises funds for the Met’s Costume Institute.