leonard lauder donates cubist collection

woman in an armchair (eva) by pablo picasso, 1913

bouteille de rhum (bottle of rum) by georges braque, spring 1914

the typographer by fernand leger, 1918

leonard lauder

heir to estee lauder's cosmetics fortune, philanthropist leonard lauder has pledged his renowned collection of cubist works to the metropolitan museum of art. the collection, that museum director thomas campbell said is "truly transformational", includes 78 pieces from pablo picasso, georges braque, juan gris & fernand leger & is valued at over $1 billion. the collection is expected to be presented in the fall of 2014.

metropolitan costume gala - 2012 - the fashion crowd!

carine roitfeld in givenchy haute couture.

giovanna battaglia in dolce & gabbana with vladimir restoin-roitfeld.

franca sozzani & adrien brody.

grace coddington

stefano tonchi & anh duong.

andrea dellal in dolce & gabbana.

amanda brooks

karlie kloss in jason wu with jason wu.

jourdan dunn & cara delevingne in burberry.

sarah brown

marpessa hennink in dolce & gabbana.

haider ackermann with constance jablonski in haider ackermann.

prisca courtin-clarins, jenna courtin-clarins & claire courtin-clarins, all in mugler.

amy fine collins

dree hemingway in topshop.

china chow in john paul gaultier.

lauren santo domingo in oscar de la renta.

(okay she looks a little cukoo pants but....i'd rather see 100 of these than 100 badly dressed starlets!)

here is proof that there should be a limit on the starlets allowed at the gala. aren't these people infinitely more interesting??  i'd rather see a bunch of crazies dressed insanely (and chic) than badly styled starlets wearing things that not only look awful on them but say absolutely nothing about them. stop the madness.

metropolitan costume gala - 2012

the good:

anna wintour in customized prada. 

i'm not usually a fan of hers but i think she nailed it for the night.

lana del rey in altuzarra.

kind of love. very schiaperelli.

mary-kate olsen in the row.

i know she's getting panned but i LOVE LOVE LOVE this!  

seriously love. i'm all about granny chic.

cate blanchett in alexander mcqueen.

regal as always.

rooney mara in givenchy.

edgy but soft. i like her red carpet style.

linda fargo in schiaparelli.

jessica stam in dior by john galliano.

i bet this felt amazing to wear.

lily collins in valentino.

so loving the 70s valentino looks.

sarah jessica parker in valentino.

did i mention i've been into granny chic lately?  

marion cotillard in christian dior couture.

don't love this but she looks great.

camilla belle in ralph lauren collection.

i've really been liking ralph lauren again.

okay ignore the actress (emma stone) who looks like a 6 year old (sorry alber) - it's all about karlie kloss in jason wu.  tried to find a better picture but couldn't. love that the 17 year old looks like a vixen! 

bianca brandolini d'adda in dolce & gabbana.

okay she looks like a shiny midieval maiden but i kind of like that she went balls to the wall.

the short:

carey mulligan in prada.

shiny. shiny. shiny.

kristen wiig in stella mccartney.

i normally don't love her on the red carpet but i think this shape is quite flattering on her.

kate bosworth in prada. 

stella tennant in chanel.

the risk-takers:

anja rubik in anthony vaccarello.

i guess if i had her body i would go for it as well.

florence welch in alexander mcqueen.

again this is getting panned but i kind of really love it. i mean why not? you're going to the met costume gala, why not just go for it?  i bet she feels absolutely wonderful in this.

chloe sevigny in miu miu.

not my thing but she is rocking it. and not boring.

the boring & safe:

(but can't say they don't look good)

jessica alba in michael kors.

amber valletta in prada.

amy adams in  giambattista valli.

sofia vergara in marchesa.

julianne hough in carolina herrera.

 the couples:

l'wren scott & mick jagger.

james murphy & christina topsøe.

i would totally wear her dress.

james franco in gucci & marina abramovic.

david byrne & sally singer.

jessica biel in prada & justin timberlake.

the bad:

kirsten dunst in rodarte.

mrs. claus?

gwyneth paltrow in prada.

this is doing absolutely nothing for her.