The most lavish New York City party of the year - Costume Institute Gala, which combines art, fashion and Hollywood glamour into one evening, took place this Monday at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The annual ball and gala, hosted by "Vogue" and Chanel attracts the creme de la creme of New York money, fashion and celebrity world where everyone dresses up and views an exhibition by various prominent designers.

This year, the museum decided to honor just one designer, a force of nature in himself, Alexander McQueen who has been creating fashion for the past 19 years. McQueen's exhibit titled "Savage Beauty was open to the press earlier in the day, to which the Polish Daily News was invited as well.

The exhibit unveils the designer's fascination with 19th century Romantic Victorian era. Some of the themed galleries included: "The Savage Mind," "Romantic Gothic," "Romantic Nationalism," "Romantic Exoticism," and "Romantic Primitivism," made up of avante-garde designs, each one telling a story through clothing.

"The Met is an extraordinary platform for fashion. I always felt that fashion is a living artform," said the exhibition's curator Andrew Bolton. "The most important art is democratic and accessible, so I hope a lot of people will wear McQueen's designs tonight.”

This year, the gala was chaired by "Vogue" editor Anna Wintour, Oscar winner Colin Firth, actress Salma Hayek and husband Francois-Henri Pinault (who have been wearing a lot of McQueen lately), and fashion designer Stella McCartney, who was already spotted walking around the Met during the press conference. The high-end event is by invitation only and price per plate ranges from $5000 and up. The evening includes a red carpet stroll, dinner, a private auction of costumes and an exhibition display.

British designer McQueen started creating fashion in 1992. For several years he was also the chief designer at Givenchy. Some of his earliest clients included Mikhail Gorbachev and Prince Charles of England. From the start, McQueen's collections were considered shocking and controversial, coining him "the huligan of British fashion."

The artist designer himself admitted to not being a fan of ordinary beauty. "It's the ugly things I notice more, because other people tend to ignore the ugly things," "I find beauty in the grotesque, like most artists. I have to force people to look at things," were some of the designer's quotes on display at the museum. McQueen was known to suffer from depression, and on Feb. 1 2010 committed suicide in his London apartment. He was 40 years old.

"I hope this year's exhibit captures the emotionality of his collection," added curator Bolton. Alexander McQueen's exhibit will be open to the public at the Met May 4-July 31. For more information, go to http://www.metmuseum.org/. McQueen's last collection (fall/winter 2000-10) McQueen's fall/winter 2000-09 collection inspired by Queen of England ALEXANDER McQUEEN SAVAGE BEAUTY Press preview of Alexander McQueen exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Done