Priyanka Chopra Won Fashion at the Hammer Museum's Gala in the Garden

It was a night of fashion and art with a touch of Hollywood sparkle, as Priyanka Chopra, Sarah Jessica Parker, Camilla Belle and more wined and dined under the stars at the Bottega Veneta-sponsored Hammer Gala in the Garden Friday night.

Held at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, the annual fashionable fete honored filmmaker and director Ava Duvernay and Pulitzer prize-winning author Hilton Als for their significant contributions to the arts.

“It’s just an enormous embrace,” Als told InStyle about being recognized at the event. “It’s a thrill, and I feel incredibly honored to be here in Los Angeles in particular where there’s so much diversity going on. It’s an incredibly fine institution, and it means a lot to me.”

Per usual, the fundraising event doubled as a fashion show of sorts, with Parker, Emmy Rossum, Belle, SJP and more mixing and mingling during the cocktail reception in stunning Bottega Veneta stylings. The Sex and the City star opted for a shimmery black dress with a plunging neckline and statement textured black pumps and gushed to us about her love for the fashion house and its creative director.

“I’m a longtime admirer of Tomas [Maier],” she said, after taking in one of the museum’s exhibits. “I love the work, and I have even prior to his tenure. I’ve followed him for a long time. I think he’s an extraordinary person, an amazing businessman, and a brilliant designer, and the combination of those, I think, make him singular. So I’m very happy to be here tonight.”

Meanwhile, Belle was loving her white dress with black piping, she told us. “It’s really simple within the detail, super feminine,” she said. The Sundown star added that it was her first time attending the event, and that she was thrilled to celebrate Duvernay’s work.

“She’s a pioneer female filmmaker, and we need more women like her in this business,” Belle said. “So, you can’t help but really respect her, and look up to her, and aspire to be somewhat like her as well when you’re in this industry. Hopefully, we’ll get more Avas around as the time goes on.”

Rossum, who is no stranger to the event, dazzled in a metallic dress cinched with a silver belt. She flashed her megawatt smile as she chatted up attendees with her husband Sam Esmail, telling us, “I love the outdoor air of the museum, how it’s both indoors and outdoors—and I love that it’s about five minutes from where we live.”

The Shameless star also sang Duvernay’s praises, telling us, “She’s a feminist. She’s outspoken. She uses her platform for good. She is fierce and unafraid, both in her storytelling and in her individuality as a woman, and I can’t wait to hear what she has to say tonight.”

Ahead of the dinner, guests caught up with each other over champagne and cocktails. It turned into a bit of a girls’ night out as Sofia Boutella chatted up Jessica Lange with a glass of white wine in hand in a metallic, plunging Bottega Veneta dress. Near the bar, Chopra, who wowed in a sparkly multicolored Bottega number tucked under an off-white silk jacket, talked animatedly to January Jones and Ellen Pompeo.

Pompeo and Jones both rocked eye-catching looks of their own, with the Grey’s Anatomy star wearing a backless, sequined gold Tom Ford dress and Jones sporting a pleated dress and beaded black strappy heels that she wore with slouched socks.

As the cocktail reception came to a close, Tessa Thompson, Rashida Jones, and Kiersey Clemons shared a laugh before they headed downstairs for a night under the stars complete with artistic inspiration and a musical performance by HAIM.