Every first Monday in May, millions of us tune in to the Met Gala for one reason: to look. As each celebrity arrives at the exclusive fashion fundraiser, our eyes immediately see something that makes or breaks the outfit. Some outfits will barely get noticed, but others command our visual attention and, quite literally, steal the spotlight. This is what psychologists refer to as the power of first impressions.

Brands get the same brief moments to make an impression (minus the marble steps and flashing paparazzi). Consumers scroll past ads, glance at packaging, and land on websites for a handful of seconds at most. In that blink, their brains have already decided what’s worth noticing and what to ignore.

But the tricky thing about visual attention is that while we can predict it to a great extent, it still manages to surprise us. For the Met Gala, we could expect the most expensive dress or fashionably flawless design to be unanimously decided as the “best look”. But this isn’t the case. Every year, we have thousands of videos and articles ranking outfits, and backlash from those that disagree is expected. Interestingly, the way we respond to Met Gala looks is very similar to how we respond to products and packaging. They aim to pull us in, hold our attention, and make us want something. The best looks at the Met Gala and best packs on the shelf do all three.

Whether it’s couture or a carton, our brains are running the same unconscious checklist: Does this pull me in? Do I want to keep looking? Would I want this?  

Visual saliency answers our first question: Does this pull me in? When someone steps onto the Met Gala carpet, we like to think we're carefully considering the outfit: the craftsmanship, theme interpretation, and styling choices. But our brains have reached a verdict before any of that conscious analysis begins. Research shows that visual processing kicks in as early as 50 milliseconds after we see something (1). That's half the time it takes to blink!

Think of your visual attention as a magnet. Visual elements like contrast, colours, and shapes attract your magnet before you’ve consciously decided where to look. This is visual saliency, which is our tendency to notice things that stand out from their surroundings. The Met Gala weaponises this through novelty and the supernormal stimulus effect (2). Looks use saturated colours, exaggerated proportions, and heightened contrasts to be bolder than everyday fashion. Think of it like the caricature drawings you can get on the beach. The artist exaggerates specific, distinct features such that the subject is still recognisable, sometimes more so than in a normal photograph. The Met Gala makes use of this by making outfits impossible to ignore, but still within our scope of understanding.

Just like how Met Gala outfits compete for attention, so does packaging on a shelf. Some designs lean into these principles (unique colours, distinctive shapes, bold text) to grab that initial glance. This is the first lesson from the Met Gala: don’t underestimate the importance of that first visual impression. If pack design was a Met Gala outfit, the question becomes: what does its entrance look like?

Visual hierarchy answers our second question: Do I keep looking? At the Met Gala, drawing attention is only half the battle. The real success is keeping it. Nothing would be more awkward than stepping onto the red carpet, only to get a single glance from photographers and watch them immediately pivot to the next arrival. This means successful looks don’t just turn heads, they keep people looking, studying, and asking questions. The time spent on the steps becomes a measure of engagement: how long can this look command the spotlight before attention moves on?

The brain is efficient. It doesn’t waste time processing information that is disjointed or too difficult to organise. It relies on what psychologists call “Gestalt principles”, a set of perceptual rules that help us quickly make sense of what we see by organising visual elements into patterns (3). The most engaging Met Gala looks sustain attention by guiding the viewer’s gaze. An example of this is Blake Lively’s Statue of Liberty gown, which unfolded to reveal a color shift of copper to green, resembling the actual statue’s oxidation. Each element was positioned to reduce cognitive effort and encourage sequential processing, creating a clear visual journey or hierarchy.

Applying this to packaging, a product might grab attention on the shelf, but if a consumer can’t quickly extract the information they need, the glance will end there. This is why visual hierarchy is so important: it guides the eye through that information effortlessly. This is the second lesson offered by the Met Gala. The goal is no longer “just to be seen”, but to be understood. Again, if pack design was a Met Gala outfit, the question becomes: do the viewers understand what they’re seeing?

Visual appeal answers our final question: Would I want this? Not every Met Gala look resonates with everyone. A look that makes one person gasp in admiration might leave someone else yawning. This is the self-relevance effect. When something feels personally relevant, it gets processed more deeply. Research shows that self-relevance doesn’t only influence how we feel about what we see, but it changes how we see in the first place (4). When visual cues feel relevant, they appear higher in contrast, command more attention, and are encoded more deeply compared to visual cues that feel irrelevant.

This is why Met Gala fashion designers don’t aim for universal approval. They create Met Gala looks with deliberate, research-informed design by studying the wearer’s identity and tapping into how the audience relates to that identity. This results in a celebrity wearing their look with ownership, and viewers feeling like the designer understood the assignment. For example, Doja Cat, who walked the steps dressed like a cat with feline prosthetics, captivated viewers who felt the look aligned with her brand. This led them to pick up on finer visual cues, like her nails being made into claws. Doja Cat’s look also benefited from the supernormal stimulus effect at work. Her designers could have just referenced a cat, but they decided to transform her into one. This, coupled with her brand, made her instantly noticeable, recognizable, and fascinating to look at.

When applied to packaging, a design that tries to appeal to everyone, often ends up resonating with no one. Visual choices like colour, typography, and imagery should be made with the target consumer in mind. This is what makes a consumer feel like the product is made for them. This is the final lesson from the Met Gala: the goal of visual appeal is not universal admiration but to create resonance with the people who matter most. If a pack design was a Met Gala outfit, the final question becomes: do the viewers find this personally appealing?

From the Met Gala to the supermarket shelf, the rules of visual attention don’t change. The success of red carpet looks and product packaging are not just measured by being noticed, but also by being understood and chosen. In a world where everyday design has become somewhat boring, the Met Gala continuously brings back adventurous design spirit. Remember when Cracker Barrel had to restore their original logo because people hated the new, flat one? The Met Gala serves as a reminder that bold, distinctive, even exaggerated visual choices can still create resonance. In fact, many consumers look for it.

(1)   Hoffman, J. E., 1975. Hierarchical stages in the processing of visual information. Perception & Psychophysics, 18(5), pp. 348-354.

(2)   Goodwin, B. C., Browne, M. & Rockloff, M., 2015. Measuring Preference for Supernormal Over Natural Rewards: A Two-Dimensional Anticipatory Pleasure Scale. Evolutionary Psychology, 13(4).

(3)   Macrae, C. N., 2018. Self-relevance enhances the benefits of attention on perception. Visual Cognition, 26(7), pp. 475-481.

(4)   SimplyPsychology, 2025. What is Gestalt Psychology? Theory, Principles, & Examples. [Online] Available at: https://www.simplypsychology.org/what-is-gestalt-psychology.html