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Donald Trump was a regular at the Met Gala beginning in the 1980s.
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Melania Trump wore looks from designers who would go on to dress her as first lady.
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Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner attended the event up until 2016.
Before he became president of the United States, New York real-estate magnate Donald Trump was a regular attendee of the Met Gala.
The annual fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute features a high-profile guest list curated by Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour. On a 2017 episode of “The Late Late Show with James Corden,” Wintour revealed that she would not invite the former president back to the event.
Single tickets to “fashion’s biggest night” start at around $30,000 each, while tables cost as much as $275,000. Last year’s Met Gala raised almost $22 million, Vogue Business reported.
Ahead of this year’s event on Monday, May 6, here’s a look back at the Trump family’s Met Gala appearances through the years.
Throughout the 1980s, Donald Trump attended the Met Gala with his first wife, Ivana Trump.
Trump married Ivana in 1977. She gave birth to Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, and Ivanka Trump before they divorced in 1989.
At the 1985 Met Gala, where the theme was “Costumes of Royal India,” Trump wore a black tuxedo, while Ivana wore a purple leopard-print dress with a matching shawl.
Trump appeared to wear similar tuxedos year after year, while Ivana changed up her looks.
For the “Dance” theme in 1986, Ivana wore a sequined red dress with a sweetheart neckline and accessorized with a matching shawl and clutch.
She wore a strapless green gown accessorized with red jewelry, a red clutch, and red lipstick in 1987 while her then-husband carried a fur coat.
The Met Gala celebrated the Costume Institute’s 50th anniversary in 1987 with the theme “In Style.”
They attended the Met Gala together for the last time in 1989.
Ivana wore a black gown embellished with pearls for the gala’s theme of “The Age of Napoleon: Costume from Revolution to Empire, 1789-1815.” Trump stuck with his black tuxedo and black bow tie, but this time, his white shirt featured black buttons.
Trump went to the 1998 Met Gala with photographer Andrea Murray as his date.
In 1998, the theme of the event was “Cubism and Fashion.” Trump wore his standard tuxedo, while Murray wore a strapless black dress with a front slit, and she carried a beaded bag.
In 2003, he was joined by model Melania Knauss, who would eventually become his third wife.
Trump and Melania met at a party in New York City in 1998 while he was separated from his second wife, Marla Maples. They wed in 2005.
Melania wore a cream micro-pleated dress and carried a shiny silver clutch for the 2003 Met Gala’s “Party of the Year” theme. Trump wore his usual tuxedo.
Melania’s black gown with bold cutouts matched the gala’s 2004 theme, “Dangerous Liaisons: Fashion and Furniture in the 18th Century.”
Trump proposed to Melania at the 2004 Met Gala with a 15-carat diamond ring valued at $1.5 million.
Ivanka Trump also made her Met Gala debut in 2004.
Ivanka chose a peach off-the-shoulder dress with butterfly-shaped lace cutouts and a thigh-high slit.
Melania’s Alexander McQueen mermaid gown in 2005 featured a tulle underskirt.
She also carried a Chanel clutch for the 2005 theme of “The House of Chanel.”
Ivanka Trump accessorized a black ruffled dress with a matching scarf for the 2005 gala.
She added diamond jewelry and black open-toe heels to complete the outfit.
While pregnant with their son, Barron, in 2006, Melania Trump wore a white empire-waist dress with a black sash.
The theme of the Met Gala that year was “Anglomania: Tradition and Transgression in British Fashion.”
Ivanka Trump’s chocolate-brown dress featured a plunging neckline and bow at the waist.
She wore her hair in an updo and carried a cream bag.
Trump wore his traditional tuxedo again in 2007, while his wife shimmered in a gold fringe dress by Roberto Cavalli.
The 2007 Met Gala honored French designer Paul Poiret as “The King of Fashion.”
In 2007, Ivanka Trump walked the Met Gala red carpet in a black-and-white gown by Jason Wu.
Wu also designed Michelle Obama‘s 2009 inaugural ball gown.
At the 2008 Met Gala, Melania wore a magenta Vera Wang dress, while Trump wore a tuxedo.
The theme of the 2008 Met Gala was “Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy.”
Ivanka wore an ethereal white J. Mendel gown and jeweled headpiece at the superhero-themed event.
She appeared on the red carpet with designer Gilles Mendel of J. Mendel.
Melania embraced the 2009 Met Gala theme, “The Model As Muse,” in Dolce & Gabbana.
Years later, Melania Trump wore a Dolce & Gabbana blazer in her official White House portrait. She also garnered controversy in 2017 when she wore an expensive jacket from the designer to the G7 Summit that retails for $51,500 — more than most Americans make in a year.
Jared Kushner accompanied Ivanka to the Met Gala for the first time that same year.
Ivanka and Kushner met at a networking lunch in 2007. They broke up in 2008 due to religious differences but rekindled their relationship three months later. After Ivanka converted to Judaism, the pair got engaged in July 2009.
At the 2009 Met Gala, Ivanka wore a pale Brian Reyes dress with touches of black throughout the outfit. Kushner appeared in a classic black suit with a black tie.
Melania’s navy ball gown at the 2010 Met Gala, designed by Christian Siriano, fit the theme of “American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity.”
In 2017, Siriano told Time magazine that he would not dress Melania in her capacity as first lady because he did not support the political outlook she represented.
“I dress people that I can support and support what they’re doing in their lives,” he said. “That’s why it’s important to me and it should be important to every designer because the people that you put in your brand represent the brand.”
Newlyweds Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner also attended the 2010 gala, with Ivanka in a lilac gown by Atelier Versace.
Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner wed in October 2009 at the Trump National Golf Club in New Jersey.
Melania sparkled in a gold Reem Acra dress at the 2011 Met Gala honoring Alexander McQueen.
She added a gold clutch and accessories from Alexander McQueen to complete the look.
In 2012, at Trump and Melania’s last Met Gala appearance, her Marc Bouwer dress featured pointed shoulders and an asymmetrical hemline.
The theme that year was “Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations.”
Ivanka and Kushner skipped the Met Gala in 2011, but they were back in 2012.
Ivanka wore a navy gown with cutouts and sheer panels by Peter Pilotto, while Kushner joined her in a tuxedo.
Ivanka got into character for the “Punk: Chaos to Couture” theme in 2013 with dark streaks in her hair and a daring outfit by Juan Carlos Obando.
Ivanka’s ensemble featured a black top, a green floor-length skirt with a high slit, and gold spiked jewelry.
She wore a vibrant green Oscar de la Renta gown for the 2014 event, themed “Charles James: Beyond Fashion.”
Oscar de la Renta also co-chaired the 2014 Met Gala.
In 2015, Ivanka wore a blue and white Prabal Gurung gown with a flowing train.
The theme of the 2015 Met Gala was “China: Through the Looking Glass.”
The last time Ivanka and Kushner attended the Met Gala was in the midst of Trump’s 2016 campaign.
Ivanka wore a red Ralph Lauren jumpsuit for the theme “Manus x Machina: Fashion In An Age Of Technology” just over a month after giving birth to her and Kushner’s third child, Theodore James.
She and Kushner have not been back to the Met Gala since serving as advisors in Trump’s White House administration.
Read the original article on Business Insider
