Serena Williams floated down the Met Gala pink carpet on Monday evening in a yellow Versace gown with pink floral applique, her yellow Off-White x Nike sneakers peeking out from beneath the frock. Her husband, Alexis Ohanian, stood by her side in a white tux with black trim as cameras flashed and flickered.
The 23-time Grand Slam singles title champion, who launched her eponymous clothing line in May 2018, is co-chairing the Gala alongside Harry Styles, Lady Gaga, Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele and Vogue editor Anna Wintour.
The Gala, one of the most prestigious fashion events of the year, is an annual fundraising event for the benefit of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute in New York City. It also marks the opening of the Costume Institute's annual fashion exhibit. This year's Gala theme explores the origins of "camp," a fashion aesthetic that loosely explores irony, parody and exaggeration. Susan Sontag's 1964 essay "Notes on 'Camp'" provides the framework for the exhibition and event.
"It's avant-garde, it's extreme," Williams said of the Gala's theme via Instagram.
The Gala hasn't distracted Williams from training. She knocked around a few balls on the tennis court before going into pre-gala glam. Williams has not played since withdrawing from her third-round match at the Miami Open in March with a previously undisclosed left knee injury. However, the tennis star is set to return from injury at the upcoming Italian Open, which begins May 13.
