Last night’s Met gala red carpet provided a view of a national treasure, arriving in the form of National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman, representing a modern-day Lady Liberty. “As soon as I was asked to be a cohost for the Met gala, I immediately knew I wanted to reimagine the Statue of Liberty,” Gorman tells Vogue. “It was important to me to hold a book much like the statue’s, with a line from the poem at the base of Lady Liberty, as well as to wear a laurel crown to symbolize my experience as a laureate,” she says about the Edie Parker bag and Jennifer Behr headpiece that accessorized her Vera Wang gown. For the museum’s “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion” exhibit, Gorman also carried a newly lit (metaphorical) torch for Estée Lauder as the brand’s Global Changemaker, a role in which she serves as the curator of a special Writing Change initiative created to advance literacy, particularly among women and girls.
“I was on a ‘Met Glam Squad’ group chat all last week discussing the look with my team,” says Gorman, who worked with makeup artist Joanna Simkin to design a beauty moment that played off her ultramarine gown embroidered with over 3,000 stones. “We became obsessed with the idea of stones across my face, and completing that element took about five of us over an hour,” says Gorman of the billowing stars that swept across her eyes. The shape of the constellation had meaning as well: “When I saw the dress with the stones, I immediately thought of the stars on the American flag and wanted to echo the shape of the flag blowing in the wind,” says Simkin.
To prep for their shared vision, Simkin layered Estée Lauder Revitalizing Supreme+ Bright Moisturizer and Estée Lauder The Illuminator Radiant Perfecting Primer + Finisher on Gorman’s skin before evening out her tone with Double Wear Stay in Place complexion products and defining brows. “To create a shimmery base before applying the gemstones, I applied the metallic shadows from two Estée Lauder Pure Color Envy Sculpting EyeShadow 5-Color Palettes—Dark Ego and Pink Mink,” Simkin shares, and also “gave her a subtle winged eye using Estée Lauder Little Black Liner.” The lip stayed intentionally neutral (so as not to transfer onto the night’s required face covering), and the skin was given a reflective finish. A braided ponytail designed by hairstylist LaRae Burress represented her physical torch as well. “The tail of her pony is a rhinestone Bantu knot with wispy ends that mimic the fire of the torch,” says Burress.
Here, a window into Gorman’s moments before the red carpet:
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1/12“We knew my shoulders were going to be bare, so wanted to make sure my skin was extra luminescent,” says Gorman of the night’s spread of illuminating Estée Lauder products.
2/12“We decided to do chrome nails with a blue undertone to highlight the royal blue color of her dress,” says nail artist Yoko Sakakura. “I knew she wasn’t going to wear lots of jewelry on her hands, so I wanted to give her an extra bling moment on her nails to complement the crystals on her dress.”
3/12“The inspiration for Amanda’s variated braided ponytail came from the torch of the Statue of Liberty,” explains hair artist LaRae Burress of wisping out ends on the rhinestone Bantu knot to mimic flames.
4/12Sapphire and diamond Chopard earrings added to the evening’s light-catching layers.
5/12“Had to take a glam break to get a quick bite from Marinara Pizza,” says Gorman.
6/12“Vera and her team were so great to collaborate with,” Gorman shares. “I think their final interpretation was exactly what I envisioned.”
7/12“It was important to me to hold a book much like the statue's, with a line from the poem at the base of Lady Liberty,” says Gorman of Edie Parker’s bag, a representation of her experience as a laureate. Here, it’s pictured with Stuart Weitzman’s lapis heels, custom-dyed to match the gown.
8/12“Amanda wanted a defined brow look, which we achieved with Estée Lauder Brow Now Stay-in-Place Brow Gel and Estée Lauder The Brow Multi-Tasker in Dark Brunette,” says Simkin.
9/12“When I saw the dress with the stones, I immediately thought of the stars on the American flag and wanted to echo the shape of the flag blowing in the wind,” says Simkin.
10/12Gorman smiles as Simkin completes the finishing touches. “For the lip, we wanted to keep it neutral,” says Simkin. “So I first applied Estée Lauder Pure Color Envy Color Replenish Lip Balm to prep her lips, then added the Estée Lauder Pure Color Whipped Matte Lip Color in 922 Cocoa Whip.
11/12For the laurel crown, Gorman worked with Brooklyn-based designer Jennifer Behr and stylist Jason Bolden to create the “reimagined” design. Behr says her process involved “combings through my classic archives and also playing around with never-before-seen pieces to really [home] in on their inspiration.”
John Shearer12/12Gorman’s first steps onto the Met Gala red carpet as cohost for the museum’s “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion” exhibit.
