New York Times fashion critic Vanessa Friedman tells Janelle Monae “it’s hats off to you” in this post about Monae’s costume at Monday night’s Met Gala. Here’s the background story on Monae’s “surreal” Met Gala look in this interview in Variety with her stylist. “Alexandra Mandelkorn went through 15 sketches before settling on Janelle Monae’s final Met Gala look. Mandelkorn is the mastermind stylist behind Monae’s red carpet reign and is responsible for her style from PYNK-era to present. When it comes to Monae’s look for the first Monday of May event, Mandelkorn turned to Picasso and Dali for inspiration and incorporated surrealism with the artificial and over-the-top. The charity ball, hosted by Vogue editor Anna Wintour and a band of talent, is known for making hundreds of stars play by the rules of the annual theme, which is inspired this year by the Susan Sontag essay Notes on Camp."