The late fashion designer, who served as creative director of Chanel, Fendi, Balmain and more over his career, will be honored at the iconic event in May.
The exhibition, called “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty,” will explore the illustrious designer’s career, which spanned from 1954 to 2019 across multiple high-fashion brands, including Balmain, Chloé, Fendi, Chanel and his own eponymous line.
In addition to being heavily involved in the 2015 Chanel-themed event, Lagerfeld was a fixture at the Met Gala over the years, as he was“Karl never tired of telling me that fashion did not belong in a museum,” the Costume Institute’s Wendy Yu Curator in Charge, Andrew Bolton, told Vogue. Lagerfeld was a fixture of the Met Gala red carpet. Here, he’s pictured with Blake Lively at the 2011 event that honored the late Alexander McQueen.“When we worked on the Chanel show together he was incredibly generous in what he lent, but he was completely disinterested in the exhibition itself! He would say, ‘Fashion is not art — fashion belongs on the street, on women’s bodies, on men’s bodies.
In this spirit, Bolton said that he will not be gathering a traditional retrospective for the museum exhibit for which the gala celebrates, but rather focusing on Lagerfeld’s penchant for sketches and drawings. All 150 of the selected looks will be accompanied by their original sketches.Chanel will serve as “chief sponsor” of the exhibit while “major support” will be given by Fendi and Karl Lagerfeld the fashion brand and Condé Nast will “add additional funding,” according to Vogue.
Lagerfeld and Anna Wintour were the closest of friends for many decades. They're pictured here in 1991.Lagerfeld and Anna Wintour were the closest of friends for many decades. They're pictured here in 2011.