Karl Lagerfeld, notorious designer and photographer, has undoubtedly left his mark on the fashion industry. Lagerfeld’s career jump-started when he won the International Wool Secretariat competition for his coat’s innovative use of wool, intricate design and modern aesthetic that combined functionality and style. After this win, Lagerfeld was hired by Pierre Balmain, who helped train Lagerfeld and exposed him to couture and the high fashion world.
Lagerfeld would later carry his talent of combining modernity with respect to the classics into fashion powerhouses like Fendi. He is best known for his work with Chanel, embodying their concept of the “total look” — a sartorial philosophy in which the way clothes are styled is more important than the pieces themselves. Throughout his work for other brands and his own eponymous label, Karl Lagerfeld, he has incorporated elements of street style and Parisian chic to make high fashion more accessible and appealing.
However, alongside Lagerfeld’s legacy as an accomplished designer live his fatphobic, misogynistic and xenophobic comments. He publicly called Adele too fat, stated anorexia was not as dangerous as junk food, and said in a 2009 interview with Focus Magazine that “no one wants to see curvy women.” Lagerfeld also believed models shouldn’t have a say in their posing and expressed disdain for the #MeToo movement. Last but not least, he expressed his disapproval of Germany accepting refugees from Muslim-majority countries, suggesting it was an insult to Holocaust victims.
Thus, when the Met Gala 2023 theme was announced to be “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty” in order to honor his passing on Feb. 19, 2019, people were torn. Some aligned with the Met Gala high fashion team, who announced that they would not host their usual digital companion event because they didn’t want to celebrate and glorify such a controversial figure. Others, however, including Anna Wintour, believed Lagerfeld’s impact on fashion and culture was monumental and deserving of a Met Gala theme. This conversation is complicated, as both sides have a point: Lagerfeld is a controversial figure who has made harmful remarks, but he is also one of the most iconic figures in the fashion industry. Is it possible — and should we even try — to separate the art from the artist in this case?
On one hand, viewers’ main method of sending a message to a public figure is through engagement. Some may argue that all publicity is good publicity, and that condemning Lagerfeld’s remarks is only keeping his tainted legacy alive. This holds especially true for music artists and social media figures whose engagement equates to revenue, which incentivizes their polarizing actions or rhetoric, even if it becomes ragebait. On the other hand, the idea of separating the art from the artist implies that the artist “owns” their art. In the literal sense, an artist owns or profits from the work that they have written, published and composed, but the beauty of art is that it is something others can consume and make their own. The Harry Potter franchise has inspired dozens of fantasy series and ignited the imaginations of millions of people; rappers like Kendrick Lamar and Big Sean have taken inspiration from Kanye West in their own music. Similarly, fashion designers from all over the world still use Karl Lagerfeld’s work as a blueprint to inform their own work. Thus, it would be fair for one to question whether it important to engage with controversial works in order to understand more facets of society and culture. The question this leaves, however, is where do we draw the line?
This is a nuanced and sensitive topic, where everyone’s boundaries are determined on a case-to-case basis. I personally draw the line when the artist’s work is representative of their hurtful and controversial worldviews. Lagerfeld’s blatant fatphobia is evident through his designs and work as a photographer, which excluded plus-sized bodies and reinforced the rigid beauty standards of his day. While I do not support Lagerfeld’s work, I can still appreciate the contributions he made to the fashion industry and the resulting contemporary designers who made Lagerfeld’s vision their own.
As we all continue to navigate this gray area, it’s important to give ourselves grace. Ultimately, it’s impossible and unrealistic for an audience to consume solely from “morally correct” media and creators. Any public figure will have their own history of controversies that inevitably come to light after being scrutinized by hundreds of millions of people. However, by reflecting on our own values and beliefs, we can try our best to be mindful of who we choose to support, appreciate or neglect. And by doing so, we all have the opportunity to shape and define our cultural legacy.
SHEI Features Writer Raymond Zou can be reached at rayzou@umich.edu.
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