Nude Performer Interrupts Met Gala, Arrested for Public Lewdness

At the Metropolitan Museum of Art's annual fundraising gala on May 1, 2017, a nude performance by Moscow-based artist Fyodor Pavlov-Andreevich caused a stir. The performer was delivered to the red carpet inside a sealed plexiglass box, curled in a fetal position. Security quickly covered him with a white sheet and removed him. Pavlov-Andreevich was arrested and later released, facing charges including disorderly conduct and public lewdness, according to the New York Daily News. The performance, titled 'Fondling,' was not created for the gala; it debuted in 2015 at a Fondazione Pinault event during the Venice Biennale opening, and has since been staged at Moscow's Garage Museum, Christie's London, and the 2016 São Paulo Biennial. The gala itself honored Rei Kawakubo, founder of Comme des Garçons, with a historical exhibition of 150 garments divided into eight themed rooms. Attendees included Katy Perry in Maison Margiela and Rihanna in a Kawakubo creation.