KARL LAGERFELD BEAUTY

RUNWAY IMAGE OF ENSEMBLE KARL LAGERFELD (FRENCH, BORN GERMANY, 1933–2019)

FOR HOUSE OF CHANEL (FRENCH, FOUNDED 1910), FALL/WINTER 1986-87. COURTESY CHANEL. IMAGE COURTESY OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART.

Emblematic Creative Director for the CHANEL Fashion House from 1983 until his passing in February 2019, Karl Lagerfeld was an extraordinary creative individual who reinvented the brand’s codes, first imagined by Gabrielle Chanel, through his inspiration and collections for the House.

Creating “a better future with enlarged elements of the past,” according to Goethe’s phrase which he liked to quote, Karl Lagerfeld extended the spectrum of CHANEL’s stylistic vocabulary, crossing the House’s identifying elements with his own aesthetic universe. Drawing from his vast array of cultural references, his designs were notably inspired by two of his favorite eras, Modernism and the 18th century.

The sumptuously refined silhouettes and accessories of his collections never ceased to exalt the exceptional know-how of CHANEL’s ateliers and Maisons d’art, which he nourished with continual inspiration. Karl Lagerfeld’s unrivaled gift was perfectly articulated in his final CHANEL Métiers d’art collection, named “Paris-New York,” presented in December 2018 at the Temple of Dendur at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

Garments, accessories, catwalk sets and scenography, advertising and editorial photos, film books: as the first Creative Director of a luxury brand to think of fashion design in all its facets and as a whole, Karl Lagerfeld forged his own myth. He placed himself alongside Gabrielle Chanel as the second founder of CHANEL Fashion, leaving a strong and coherent legacy that is now reinterpreted by Virginie Viard, who spent more than thirty years at his side.

CHANEL is pleased to support this exhibition, which sheds light on the work of a designer of genius who marked the history of fashion and changed the destiny of the House forever.

OPPOSITE:

SKETCH OF ENSEMBLE, HOUSE OF CHANEL (FRENCH, FOUNDED 1910), KARL LAGERFELD (FRENCH, BORN GERMANY, 1933–2019), SPRING/SUMMER 2019; COURTESY CHANEL. IMAGE COURTESY OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART.

RUNWAY IMAGE OF ENSEMBLE

KARL LAGERFELD (FRENCH, BORN GERMANY, 1933–2019) FOR HOUSE OF CHANEL (FRENCH, FOUNDED 1910), SPRING/SUMMER 2019. COURTESY CHANEL. IMAGE COURTESY OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART.

Over the course of his 54-year tenure at Fendi, Karl Lagerfeld played a vital role in shaping the history of the Roman house, as well as becoming a beloved member of the Fendi family.

“The bond between Karl Lagerfeld and Fendi is fashion’s longest love story,” said Silvia Venturini Fendi, its artistic director of menswear and accessories. Hired in 1964 by the five Fendi sisters – over five decades Karl transformed the family’s house into a playground of creativity, powered by his extraordinary and boundless imagination. It is that same vision that is celebrated throughout the exhibition, which traces his stylistic vocabulary and explores the unique working methodology that inspired such freedom. *

L-R:

SKETCH OF “PURPLE FIELD” DRESS KARL LAGERFELD (FRENCH, BORN GERMANY, 1933–2019) FOR FENDI (ITALIAN, FOUNDED 1925), FALL/WINTER 2017–18 HAUTE FOURRURE. COURTESY FENDI. IMAGE COURTESY OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART.

SKETCH OF DRESS

KARL LAGERFELD (FRENCH, BORN GERMANY, 1933–2019) FOR HOUSE OF CHANEL (FRENCH, FOUNDED 1910), SPRING/SUMMER 1995 HAUTE COUTURE. COURTESY CHANEL. IMAGE COURTESY OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART.