This years red-carpet dress code, meanwhile, was described as The Garden of Timeinspired by J.G.
Ballards short storyand also encouraged guests to bring their best nature-inspired designs to the Met steps.
A custom suit made by Jamie Okuma
I instantly knew whatand whoI wanted to wear.
Photo: Courtesy of Christian Allaire
To me, the theme afforded an ideal opportunity to spotlight a contemporary Native American artist.
Its a perfect theme for contemporary Native fashion.
I love mixing the old with the new.
A custom suit made by Jamie Okuma
Its what our people have always done.
Jamie Okuma lays out the blazer’s silk-satin lining.
I landed on purple lupines and red Indian paintbrushes.
Native fashion artist Jamie Okuma
A few weeks later, she presented me with photographs of said flowers applied onto silk twill.
Turns out the flowers are also popular in Okumas region, and the photographs captured flowers from her reservation.
She then reverse appliqued them by hand onto a custom handmade blazer made of fine wool from England.
Jamie Okuma restores an antique beaded bag.
Inside, the jacket was lined with an original Okuma design printed on silk satin.
Jamie Okuma reverse appliques the blazer by hand.
She applied an asymmetrical panel adorned with crystals and ribbons onto dress pants.
Jamie Okuma restores an antique beaded bag.
I wanted a very now look of Ojibwe style, says Okuma.
In a lot of archival images, Ojibwe men are wearing blazers with leggings and breechcloths.
She helped restore the over-100-year-old piece and added new straps to it.
An antique Ojibwe-style beaded bag restored by Jamie Okuma
With the theme of reawakening, it made sense to breathe new life into this bag, says Okuma.
The idea was to have a bandolier look.
The bag was fully covered with antique Venetian beads.
Christian Allaire at the Met Gala
I love the colors of the glass [beads], says Okuma.
Theyre the real deal because they were hand done.
Now, its all machines.
Theres no humaneness in it.
Jamie Okuma restores an antique beaded bag.
The whole ensemble was made in about a month.
(Though, this year, Lily Gladstone and Quannah Chasinghorse made the community proud.
For her, it was an opportunity to showcase just exactly what shes capable of.
I believe its one of my best pieces.
I wanted to show that when given the opportunity, we can throw down with the best.
