In 2019 we witnessed—and copied, “liked,” chattered about, and derided—style moments high and low. Meghan Markle triumphantly sidestepped maternity-wear schlump like the true fashion royal we always knew her to be. Huckster Anna Sorokin hired a professional stylist for her day in court, only to end up both mousy and convicted. And feminism and femininity struck what seemed to be a new accord: Who wasn’t inspired in February when almost all of the record 89 Democratic women in the House demonstrated their solidarity by wearing suffragette white at Trump’s State of the Union. (Answer: their 13 female Republican counterparts, who stuck to the usual boxy-red-suit script.)

No matter how you looked at it, style was part of the conversation. Statements were made, both personal and political. But let’s be clear: Some did it better than others. Who did it best? Well, Billy Porter in his epic, history-making gowns, that’s who. And Celine Dion, in her fashion-mad, slightly gonzo embrace of “extra.” Elle Fanning, who staged a veritable fashion marathon in Cannes, parading out some 15 lewks in one 336-hour stretch. And Jason Momoa, who on Oscar night, wore Fanning’s favorite hue (pink) complete with a custom Fendi scrunchie, and was all the more manly for it. Want more? How about Toronto Raptor Serge Ibaka in skirts? Dwyane Wade in glitter kicks and fanny packs? Chloe Sevigny’s reverence for...Thumbelina (believe it). And a detail about Priyanka Chopra Jonas’s rabidly covered nuptials that you haven’t heard yet. Read on.

Fashion hasn’t been this performative in decades, and the Vanity Fair Best-Dressed List is bringing you along for the ride.

THE VIRTUOSOS

Jacobs wears his own GUCCI suit, boots, and scarf and Prada shirt; sunglasses by LOEWE; hair products by R+Co; grooming products by Marc Jacobs Beauty. Photograph by Gillian Laub.

MARC JACOBS

Occupation: Fashion designer.

Home base: New York City.

Happiest wearing: Custom patent leather boots by Alessandro Michele and a suit “designed and cut perfectly by Ralph Fitzgerald,” the NYC-based tailor for Savile Row’s Huntsman, to “marry my husband, Char, this year.”

Current obsession: Nail art. Mei Kawajiri “paints each nail by hand…pure talent and passion.”

From left, from Mediapunch/Shutterstock, by Jackson Lee/GC Images, by Claudio Lavenia/Getty Images.

DIANE KEATON

Occupation: Actor.

Home base: Los Angeles.

The look: Architectural genius. Sharp tailoring, hats, belts in “black and black and white and white and black and white,” as one caption goes.

Spotted: Farmers marketing in Maison Margiela with Nancy Meyers.

ZOË KRAVITZ

Occupation: Actor.

Home base: Brooklyn.

Happiest wearing: Wedding dress, Paris, June 29, 2019.

Current obsession: “Not being on my phone.”

Trend I despise: “The one where everybody looks the same.”

Items I overuse: White tees, black pants.

Overrated: Superhigh heels.

Favorite designers: Saint Laurent, Alexander Wang, Maryam Nassir Zadeh.

Style motto: “No fear.”