London Designer Accuses The Met for Displaying ‘Temu Version’ of Her Work

Shein and other online retailers are guilty of letting mass-produced rip-offs fly under the radar. But Anouska Samms (@anouskasamms) told TikTok that her design wasn’t being plagiarized by any seedy platform. Instead, the Metropolitan Museum of Art—yes, the same institution that hosts the Met Gala—has taken and displayed her work without properly compensating or crediting Anouska.

Anouska is an emerging artist from London, United Kingdom. She creates handwoven tapestries and sculptures that have integrated human hair. She explained, “I explore how materials such as hair hold knowledge in their very form.” Anouska also said that mimicry is part of her practice. It’s ironic in this case, as it seems that her design has been mimicked.

On TikTok, Anouska placed two photos of a lace dress that has human hair interwoven in them side by side. Although the dresses resemble each other, the one on the right has better construction and form. On the other hand, the piece on the left may share the same material but is looser and amorphous.

“The Met is displaying something like a counterfeit of my work for The Met Gala opening exhibition, and they eradicated my credit and paid someone else for it,” Anouska alleged. She also said that the dress is currently on display for the permanent exhibition and its publication as well.

Anouska was only made aware of the incident once a different organization tagged her on a post by The Met, featuring her supposed work. Nevertheless, the actual post didn’t credit Anouska for her work—not even for conceptualizing the design.

Who stole Anouska’s design?

According to Anouska, she met her collaborator at a program by the Sarabande Foundation in 2023. While they were working together, he asked her to weave several textiles for their 2023 autumn and winter collection, and the now-controversial dress was born of that collaboration. In 2025, The Met collected the dress to be included in their annual fashion exhibition at the opening of the Met Gala.

Then, by the end of 2025, her collaborator informed her that they no longer wished to exhibit the piece. This was even confirmed by the museum and head curator for the Anna Wintour Costume Center at the Met, Andrew Bolton. With such a big name confirming that the dress will no longer be part of the exhibit, Anouska reasonably believed it.

But when the Met Gala did roll around the corner, Anouska was shocked to see her design in the Met. It wasn’t the original dress—rather, it appears to be a cheap knockoff created by her collaborator. Anouska’s collaborator was photographed beside the dress, taking all the credit for it while she got neither compensation nor recognition for her role.

What happened at the Met Gala goes against the contractual agreement Anouska signed. She owns the intellectual property rights to the fabric of the dress, which she designed.

Social media users were shocked by Anouska’s revelation. One commenter reacted that the exhibited dress is the “Temu version” of Anouska’s design. Others were disgusted that a reputable institution allowed one of their exhibitors to be stolen from. It shows a lack of due diligence on the Met’s behalf.

The Met reached out, but there’s no resolution yet

Anouska, in her update video, said that the Met still hasn’t properly credited her for her contribution. Initially, the institution tried to sweep the situation under the rug. They left Anouska and her collaborator to resolve the issue among themselves. But since the situation has blown up, the Met has allegedly offered Anouska $1329 in compensation. But the catch, as she explained, is that she will have to relinquish future sales and credit for her contributions in the work.

Needless to say, it wouldn’t be fair on her part, as she made a significant contribution to the design. In the end, her original design is still the basis of the copy. To say that she shouldn’t receive proper credit for her work is akin to praising a random street artist for painting a remake of the Mona Lisa and disregarding Leonardo da Vinci’s original altogether. It shouldn’t be difficult for an institution that supposedly celebrates artists to do the right thing.

(featured images: Zeyneb Alishova, Anoushka Samms, Isidora Rodriguez)

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