There they were: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Tim Burton, and Danny DeVito standing in the lobby of the Museum of Modern Art, all clad in black. What else, after all, is one supposed to wear to the opening of an exhibition devoted to the work of director Tim Burton, the man who has explored and defined the macabre, the outré, and the oddball for over 30 years?

Guests at the fete, which stretched late into the night, seemed to largely agree on the proper sartorial possibilities for such an event and arrived besuited predominantly in black, red, and silver. MoMA president Marie-Josée Kravis added a touch of sophisticated glamour to the goth color palette, with a black dress adorned with intricate lace flourishes.

P.S.1 director Klaus Biesenbach took a characteristically sleek, minimal approach to the evening’s unspoken uniform with a black tie, black shirt, and black suit, which musician Patti Smith echoed in a large black jacket and wide-brimmed hat. P.S.1’s chairman, Agnes Gund, meanwhile, took a bolder approach, sporting a blood-red dress, which bravely stood out against the dark, VIP sea.

Not everyone was following the evening’s rules, though. Emerging actress Gabourey Sidibe wore a shimmering purple dress, while performance artist Marina Abramović went with a white top and black bottom. For now, Burton is the museum’s star. But Abramović fashion gambit served as a reminder that her moment, too, will come when the museum opens a show devoted to her work in March 2010.

Click the photo gallery at left to see more of the opening of “Tim Burton” at MoMA.