It’s a wildly held belief that the Met Gala is no longer a means to purely flex your sartorial prowess.

Despite being a fundraising gala for the costume institute at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, fashion’s night of nights has taken on a life of its own and become an ostentatious display of Hollywood’s inextricable link with fashion.

Because bourgeoning style stars don’t go to a debutant ball, they go to the Met Gala.

However, despite the annual event’s regalia and pompous ceremony, the red carpet is not just a platform to don a statement-making and avant-garde ensemble that will no doubt cement you in fashion’s history book, it also serves as pseudo date night to a very exclusive few.

Indeed, if you’re elite enough for both yourself and your partner to score an invite to the fashion-forward affair, there’s no doubt you’re going to take every opportunity to revel in having the world’s eyes on you alone for the few minutes you ascend the Met’s steps.

When it comes to the first Monday in May, the name of the game has become garnering publicity for yourself through your sartorial choices, but it doesn’t hurt to pack on a slight bout of PDA.

For some couples, like the 2022 Met Gala co-chairs Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, this meant adhering to that year’s compulsory dress code “Gilded Glamour” and reflect the context of America’s Gilded Age in a courteous display of courtship.

For others, like Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid back in 2016, it’s a moment test the waters of a new relationship in Hollywood’s most saturated arena.

And let us not forget the viral Met Gala debut from Kim Kardashian and Kayne West back in 2013 who fueled the discourse around attendee politics before the concept of who should and shouldn’t go was even a thing.

While some of these couples relationship may not have withstood the test of time, the Met Gala continues to prove to be an important pop cultural medium, acting as an artifact of what was going on in each respective year.

So, from baby bumps to literal tounge touches (you have Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker to thanks for that one), keep scrolling for the GRAZIA‘s safe-for-work guide to the most memorable couple moments in Met Gala history.

19 Memorable Couple Moments in Met Gala History

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 02: Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds attend The 2022 Met Gala Celebrating “In America: An Anthology of Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 02, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/Getty Images)