Artist Anna Deller-Yee hand-painted Emma Chamberlain’s entire Met Gala gown using real fine-art supplies, spending 40 hours creating swirls of acrylic ink and glossy paint. The custom Mugler dress looked like a living painting on the red carpet.
This wasn’t just fabric printing or digital design. Deller-Yee used actual paintbrushes and art supplies to transform the dress into wearable art, inspired by Impressionist and Expressionist paintings with visible brushstrokes.
From Canvas to Catwalk
The 2026 Met Gala theme was “Fashion Is Art,” and while other celebrities recreated famous paintings, Chamberlain took a different approach. Her dress captured the essence of multiple art movements rather than copying one specific piece.
Deller-Yee started as a print designer for Italian brand Marni in 2021 but specializes in this hands-on painting technique. The finished gown needed four days to dry completely and required a 6-foot shipping crate to transport from Paris to New York without damaging the paint.
This analog approach has made Deller-Yee highly sought after. She’s worked with Nike, designed Nicki Minaj’s 2024 Met Gala outfit, and even created pieces for Vogue’s Anna Wintour. Her work proves that in our digital world, there’s still something magical about paint, brushes, and human creativity on fabric.
