Met Gala 2023: Stars gather for event celebrating Karl Lagerfeld

In the world of fashion, few events are as big, Instagram-worthy and hotly in-demand as the annual Met Gala in New York City.

The event, known for its star-studded guest list and extravagant outfits, is this year themed on the late fashion icon Karl Lagerfeld.

The invitation-only gala also raises money for the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

About 400 guests were expected to be in attendance at this year's event.

For this year's theme - "Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty" - attendees were asked to wear clothes "in honour of Karl".

The designer, who died in 2019 at the age of 85, most often wore dark sunglasses with his white hair pulled back into a ponytail. He was often pictured alongside his famously pampered cat, Choupette.

Retired tennis star Roger Federer, Grammy-winning songstress Dua Lipa, actress Penélope Cruz and writer, actor and producer Michaela Coel are this year's co-chairs, alongside Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour.

Brittney Griner, the WNBA basketball star who was jailed in Russia, attended on Monday night alongside her wife.

Last year, the Metropolitan Museum's Great Hall was festooned with 275,000 pink roses. But the decorations are nothing compared to the outfits that celebrities flaunt on their way into the event.

Much of the public's gaze, however, is on the red carpet and the lavish outfits of those in attendance - which last year included Kim Kardashian wearing a $4.8m (£3.84m) rhinestone-studded dress once worn by Marilyn Monroe.

This year, Kardashian wore a Schiaparelli design dripping in pearls, which was designed after a visit last week to the Karl Lagerfeld office in Paris, where she said she was getting "a little inspiration for the Met".

"I just wanted to feel glamourous," she told Vogue on the red carpet. "I wanted pearls - what is more Karl".

Her sisters Kylie and Kendall were also in attendance.

Individual tickets for the event this year are priced at $50,000, with tables beginning at $300,000.

Actresses Priyanka Chopra and Elle Fanning, Brooklyn and Nicola Peltz-Beckham and singer Rita Ora were all in attendance.

Rapper Lil Nas X arrived looking like some sort of mythical creature, clad in pearls and painted silver.

Embattled actor Jonathan Majors was also slated to attend as a guest of Valentino, but "mutually agreed" with the fashion house not to attend on the heels of assault charges stemming from a March incident.

Another notable invitee who was not in attendance this year was Choupette the cat - although pop star Doja Cat and actor Jared Leto both dressed like the feline.

"Many people invited me to walk the red carpet of the Met Gala 2023 in tribute to Daddy, but we preferred to stay cosy and at home," said a post on the cat's official Instagram page. "We pay tribute to my Daddy every day since his parting and we are very moved to see one more day dedicated to him."

The private event was not broadcast, but the Red Carpet was televised and livestreamed on Vogue's social media platforms.