Kim Kardashian’s glam team upset by last-minute addition of mask at Academy Museum Gala 2025

Though Kim Kardashian’s masked look had all eyes on her at Saturday night’s Academy Museum Gala, her makeup team wasn’t as thrilled with the wardrobe styling.

Kardashian stepped out in Maison Margiela Couture for the evening, wearing a nude-toned dress with a nipped-in corseted waist.

While her neck was covered in layers of gems, her face was totally concealed by a beige, semi-sheer face covering.

Kardashian revealed to Variety on the red carpet that not only did she have a full face of makeup beneath the obstructing mask, but that her makeup artist had been flown across the country specifically for the event to join hairstylist Chris Appleton.

“I flew in my favorite makeup artist Mario [Dedivanovic] from New York, and this is kind of a last-minute thing, so I’m sure he’s not so happy with it,” shared Kardashian.

She did add, however, that she planned to take the facemask off inside the gala, so Dedivanovic’s flawless work would, indeed, be seen.

Kardashian’s team, Dedivanovic and Appleton, joked in an Instagram video, “I feel like our work really just spoke for itself today. I had this creative flair going for me … and the face was insane … I don’t think people are ready …” at which point, they turned the camera on Kardashian, adding, “A mask? A mask?”

Appleton added on his own Instagram, “Behind every masked moment is a glam team silently crying 🥹.”

The 44-year-old is quite a fan of the face covering, having made waves back in 2021 at the Met Gala, choosing an all black Balenciaga look, complete with a mask.

When Alex Cooper of “Call Her Daddy” interviewed Kardashian last week, she asked about the infamous look, whether she took it off, ate, drank or allowed anyone to see her face all night.

“No,” Kardashian replied to all. “I was committed.” “It was for fashion,” she added.

The mom of four has become a little more lenient as the years have passed, it seems, allowing herself to remove her most recent high-fashion mask and allow her traditional glam to shine.

Kardashian also shared with Cooper that she estimated her annual glam costs “could be a million dollars,” which makes this weekend’s makeup seem even more of a missed opportunity.