His was one of the most iconic faces in fashion, and this year the designer – who died in 2019 – is the theme of the Met Gala in New York. His personal style – the uniform dark suits, matching shades and the ponytail – made Karl Lagerfeld instantly recognisable, and he was also known for his occasionally provocative comments.
But how is the German designer being remembered? He didn’t so much have a distinctive look or design as an impact that hit home. Today, fashion shows arguably have grown larger than the collections they showcase – and none of these shows were bigger than Lagerfeld’s spectacles at the Grand Palais in Paris.
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“Nothing ‘defined his style’ because he was a chameleon who changed his colours according to the house for which he was designing,” Valerie Steele, director and chief curator of the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology, tells BBC Culture. “As he said once, he was Miss Chanel, Miss Fendi, Miss Chloé, (even, perhaps, Miss Lagerfeld) – with different styles for each.”
Lagerfeld worked for multiple fashion houses over the years, and at the time of his death at the age of 85, he was the creative director of both Chanel and Fendi, and also ran his own label.
His career began in the 1950s, when, alongside another great, Yves Saint Laurent, he won a prestigious fashion award now known as the International Woolmark Prize. He soon became the assistant to one of the judges that year, Pierre Balmain, and his rise through the Paris fashion world continued with a series of legendary French brands, including the now defunct fashion arm of Jean Patou and Chloé.
