Looks that defined a moment in the recent history of fashion© Getty Images

From Jennifer Lopez’s Versace to Selena’s jumpsuit: 20 looks that made fashion history

Put your celeb style brain to the test


UPDATED NOVEMBER 6, 2020 3:28 PM EST

A certain iconic look on the red carpet or at an award’s show can stick in people’s minds and define an era for them, just in that one outfit. Here we take a look back at some notable experimentation in styles, materials and designs that are simply amazing. From  Jennifer Lopez ’s iconic Versace dress to  Elizabeth Hurley ’s safety pin dress with myriad other examples in between. All of these outfits achieved the same thing: they etched an image into our collective memory that defines a particular moment.

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Enviable look

We can thank Jennifer Lopez for the creation of the images tab added to Google. It was all because of the impact she caused at the 2000 Grammys, wearing her revealing – and now super famous – tropical green print Versace dress. It led to so many searches on Google, that the company realized they needed a special section just for photos. Thanks JLo!

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Attitude and pose

This black velvet dress by the Atelier Versace label may seem deceptively simple, but it confirms what Yves Saint Laurent said: “what is important in a dress is the woman who is wearing it.” And Angelina Jolie took advantage of the side slit to strike one of the most defiant, powerful, and imitated poses on the red carpet of the 2012 Oscars.

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Britney and Justin

It was 2001 when the most influential couple in American pop music at the time, Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake , showed up at the American Music Awards in coordinating outfits to forever redefine the concept of the denim suit, also known as the Canadian tuxedo. The outfits consisted of matching top and bottom denim pieces, created a moment that went down in fashion history.

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In raw meat

You can always count on Lady Gaga to cause a stir, especially when it comes to high-voltage looks; but out of her most original outfits, none will be as well-remembered as the controversial ‘meat dress’ made out of raw beef and created by Argentine artist and designer Franc Fernández, in which the singer made a big impact at the 2010 Video Music Awards.

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Shooting stars

By 2014, Rihanna was famous not only for her music but also for making her mark on the red carpet, something she capitalized on by choosing this revealing crystal-woven mesh dress designed by Adam Selman to receive the Fashion Icon Award from the CFDA (Council of Fashion Designers of America).

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Super model, super copied

Cindy Crawford’s career as an incredible supermodel and muse was laden with awe-inspiring outfits. One of those is this iconic Gianni Versace number that she wore to the 1992 VMAs. It is such an iconic outfit that Kaia Gerber , her daughter, recreated it to celebrate her 18th birthday.

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Blond Ambition

Madonna takes the task of reinventing herself very seriously. And with some memorable results like this Jean Paul Gaultier cone bra that she wore to hypnotize the audience on her Blond Ambition tour.

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Unexpected turn

These days Celine Dion is a veritable fashion icon, often leading up the best dressed lists. But she’s not been adverse to trying riskier styles in the past such as this backwards blazer at the 1999 Oscars which is one of her most remembered looks.

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Venus on the red carpet

Thierry Mugler came out of semi-retirement to create this wet-look outfit for his friend Kim Kardashian that quenched many of her fans’ thirst at the 2019 MET Gala.

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Vintage spectacle

Mugler’s career saw the production of so many memorable looks that it’s impossible to keep count. Cardi B dared to wear one of his most eye-catching designs, that made her the center of attention at the 2019 Grammy Awards.

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Naked dress

Singer and actress Cher was one of the first to dare to bare in what would become known as the naked dress in transparent creations made by designer Bob Mackie. And an outfit that gave the duo massive media coverage was this show-girl design that the singer wore to the 1986 Oscars, in defiance of all conventions at the time.

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A dress we’re hooked on

Elizabeth Hurley rocked this black dress by Versace with daring slits, accented with gold pins, alongside Hugh Grant , her boyfriend at the time. Worn to the premiere of Four Weddings and a Funeral in 1994, it helped cement the reputation of Gianni Versace. Years later, it also inspired a men’s version that was worn by her lookalike son Damian.

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Freakum dress

Designer Nicolas Jebran claimed that it took him 100 hours to finish this dress that Beyonce wore to the 2018 Grammys. The effort was worth it; the singer looked just stunning, showcasing her accented shoulders and legs in the long gown and coupled with a wide brimmed hat.

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Hot dress

Even though Paris Hilton celebrated her 21st birthday at parties in New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, and Paris in 2002, it was at the one she held in London where she really made her mark in this plunging sparkly silver chain-mail dress by British designer Julien MacDonald. The look gave way to many copy cat versions, including a one worn by Kendall Jenner also to celebrate her 21st birthday in 2017.

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Latina diva

Selena Quintanilla will be remembered as one of the most talented, charismatic, and promising Latina stars, and if there is an outfit that we’ll always remember her by, it’s this jumpsuit with a crisscross neckline, bell bottom legs and endless sparkles that has been replicated on many an occasion.

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Dress and the city

For over ten years in her role as Carrie Bradshaw on the ever-popular TV show Sex and the City, Sarah Jessica Parker gave us a plethora of looks to remember, but in real life, this ball gown, literally signed by Dominican designer Oscar De La Renta made her stand out as the true fashion icon she is at the 2014 MET Gala.

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Dressed to win

Not only did she mark a milestone in the history of film as the first African-American woman to win the Oscar for Best Actress in 2001 for her role in Monster’s Ball, but Halle Berry also topped all the best-dressed lists in this flattering burgundy dress by Elie Saab with its see-through body and long gown.

RELATED: The 10 most memorable looks from the Oscars

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Vision in black and white

The beauty of Blake Lively is undeniable and nothing showcases it better than here when she personifed old Hollywood glamour in a black and white Gucci dress on the red carpet of the Cannes Film Festival in 2014.

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Effervescent glamour

Nicole Kidman is known for her great taste, but if we have to limit ourselves to mentioning only one of her star moments, it would have to this one at the 1997 Oscars, when she wore this chartreuse straight-cut dress, a design by John Galliano for Dior .

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Lady in pink

American princess Gwyneth Paltrow is a bona fide lifestyle influencer, and her relaxed and memorable elegance was already showing when she won the Oscar for Best Actress in 1999, wearing a super-elegant pink taffeta dress designed by Ralph Lauren that has been referenced on numerous occasions.

Some of these outfits are well-preserved in private collections or even on exhibit in museums as historic pieces. Whichever the case, they will always serve as a reference to unforgettable fashion moments.