On February 19, 2019 an icon in the fashion industry was lost forever. Karl Lagerfeld was a German creative director, photographer and designer for many well renowned fashion houses. From an early age, Lagerfeld was enamoured with fashion, often found cutting out pictures from fashion magazines and even critiquing his peers outfits at school. Lagerfeld was known for his biting and controversial remarks. Following his death there has been much debate on how to appreciate Lagerfeld’s talent without condoning his problematic behavior.

Lagerfeld grew up in Nazi Germany, moving to Paris on his own at the age of 14 to pursue his career in fashion. It was in Paris that he met the late Yves Saint Laurent, two young aspiring designers that had no idea the impact they would have. By the age of 18, Lagerfeld was working under Pierre Balmain, remaining at the house of Balmain for three years.

Lagerfeld would become a star in the 1980’s when he began working for the house of Chanel. Lagerfeld also worked for many other notable brands, including Fendi and Chloe. Lagerfeld was also the creative director for his own brand Karl Lagerfeld.

In 2004, Lagerfeld was the first designer to be asked by fast fashion giant H&M to create a capsule collection, selling out in hours. Despite the success of the collection, Lagerfeld later swore he would never work with H&M again, accusing them of “snobbery.”

In this day and age there is much debate about separating art from the artist. Some believe it can be done, while others believe that supporting the art is in turn supporting the artist itself, and supporting every terrible thing that artist has ever done. Lagerfeld is a different case. Lagerfeld has made many controversial comments, most notably regarding the #MeToo movement. Lagerfeld defended stylist Karl Templer, who was accused of pulling down model’s underwear without their consent. Lagerfeld replied in an interview saying “If you don’t want your pants pulled about, don’t become a model.”

Controversy in the fashion industry is different than it is in the music or film industry. Unlike the music and film industry, the fashion industry is dominated by women, and targeted towards women. So how does an industry overflowing with women deal with someone so prominent in the industry making negative comments about women?

Senior Piper Muller appreciates Lagerfeld’s contributions to the fashion industry but still holds him accountable for his comments.

“People like Lagerfeld who are icons in the industry bring so much creativity to the table yet also bring so many toxic realities and I do think it’s wrong how people can get away with certain things just because they are famous,” said Muller. “Most people agree that Karl definitely saved Chanel and made it what it is today but I don’t think that should be used as an excuse for the controversial things he said. I do think he was a creative mastermind, but I don’t think people should forget about the disgusting things he has said about women and how inappropriate and unacceptable that is.”

Here is one thing about Lagerfeld: for every offensive comment made about women, an offensive comment was made about a man. Lagerfeld was infamous for his biting opinions on everyone and everything. Although this does not excuse any of his actions, Lagerfeld was unapologetic about his opinions and unapologetic about fashion.

“It’s unfortunate when good art comes from people with such twisted mind sets,” said Muller.   

Lagerfeld made many important contributions to the world of fashion, and his legacy will continue to live on.

Photo courtesy of Creative Commons