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Each year, on the first Monday in May, the Metropolitan Museum of Art becomes the epicentre of fashion’s most theatrical night. But while the red carpet for the annual invitation-only event often commands the spotlight, the true heart of the Met Gala lies inside: within the Costume Institute’s upcoming spring exhibition.
For 2026, that exhibition—titled “Costume Art”—is set to pair select historical garments from the Costume Institutes vast collection with art objects spanning more than 5,000 years. Yet among the couture and historical artefacts, one unexpected element has quietly become the upcoming show’s most fascinating feature: the mannequins themselves.
Special mannequins are on display throughout the exhibition that represent differently sized and abled bodies. Each of the bespoke mannequins are crowned with steel heads with a smooth reflective mirror surface in lieu of a face.
These striking mannequin heads are the work of Samar Hejazi, a Toronto-born, Dubai-based artist whose multidisciplinary practice spans sculpture, textiles, printmaking, and installation.
For Hejazi, the assignment was never about designing mannequin heads in the conventional sense. The eye-catching, mirrored faces were utterly intentional.
“Working closely with Curator in Charge Andrew Bolton, I set out to create a series of mannequin heads that rethink how the body is presented within the world of fashion,” Hejazi explains in an essay published in the just-released “Costume Art” catalogue.
“From our earliest conversations,” she continues, “we kept returning to several guiding questions: How might we destigmatize the nonideal body? How can a mannequin allow viewers to see themselves in relation to the garment and the body that carries it? And how might the mannequin’s form invite empathy and connection rather than reinforce distance?”
It’s a radical proposition for an institution long associated with aspirational beauty, but by replacing faces with mirrors, Hejazi effectively removes hierarchy. There is no singular model to admire, no fixed identity to project onto. Instead, each viewer becomes part of the work.
Hejazi’s work for the Costume Art exhibition feels especially important within the broader cultural moment, as conversations around representation, embodiment, and inclusivity continue to reshape the fashion landscape.
Hejazi, who attended Monday night’s gala wearing a gown by Palestinian designer Zaid Farouki, told CBC that she hopes that her pieces make attendees self-reflect, and her presence inspires others.
“The whole idea of it was for them to feel more involved in the experience of the work. So be involved in the body, be involved with the work, be involved in the narrative. So it’s a way of shifting them from observer to active participant in the exhibition,” she shared. “I hope that that leads to some kind of internal conversation or questioning of the work that’s presented because they’re involved in it.”
If the Met Gala is fashion’s most photographed night, this year’s exhibition may well be its most introspective. The Costume Institute’s new spring Costume Art exhibition will be on display in the Condé M. Nast Galleries at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and opens to the public on May 10, 2026, and runs through January 10, 2027.
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