Why the 2023 Met Gala theme is already facing controversy
The theme for the 2023 Met Gala has been released, and is already causing controversy both online and within the fashion community.
The annual fashion event will coincide with the Met's exhibition titled Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty, which will feature 150 pieces of clothing alongside Lagerfeld’s original sketches.
If you’re unfamiliar with Karl Lagerfeld, he has a long history in the fashion industry, culminating in being the creative director of Chanel, Fendi, and his own label.
Despite his hefty influence on fashion, Karl has regularly been the subject of many controversies, which have prompted a wave of backlash over his glorification in the form of the Met Gala theme subject.
In particular, his anti-fat language surrounding women's bodies has been called "cruel", as he even explicitly said, "no one wants to see round women" when the magazine Brigitte announced that it would use "ordinary, realistic" women over models in 2009.
Other controversial comments include calling Adele "a little too fat," Heidi Klum "too heavy," saying Pippa Middleton "should only show her back," and adding that Coco Chanel wasn't a feminist because she "was never ugly enough for that."
The designer also has a murky history with sexual assault, as he defended stylist Karl Templer after he was accused of sexual assault and said, "If you don't want your pants pulled about, don't become a model! Join a nunnery, there'll always be a place for you in the convent."
He also previously said he was "fed up" with the Me Too movement, and sent flowers to accused rapist Dominique Strauss-Kahn.
Lagerfeld also has a long history of racism, as he called Muslims the "worst enemies" of Jewish people in 2017 while criticising the acceptance of refugees in France, in comments that were reexamined after his death in 2019.
When the theme of the 2023 Met Gala was announced to be centred around Lagerfeld, many critics took to online spaces to express their anger and disappointment.
Actor and activist Jameela Jamil led the charge, saying, "This man...was indeed, supremely talented, but used his platform in such a distinctly hateful way, mostly toward women, so repeatedly and up until the last years of his life, showing no remorse, offering no atonement, no apology, no help to groups he attacked. There was no explanation for his cruel outbursts."
"Why is THIS who we celebrate when there are so many AMAZING designers out who aren't bigoted white men?"
"We didn't fight all this s*** just to throw it all away because some white guy made some pretty clothes for people's skinny [favourites]...come on now."
Image credits: Getty Images