"It's wild that they're celebrating this man": Karl Lagerfeld controversy explored as problematic past mars Met Gala 2023

The 2023 Met Gala paid tribute to the late German fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld, a decision that sparked controversy and resurfaced problematic comments he made during his career. The event, which took place on May 1 at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art, was a star-studded fest, with celebrities from Penélope Cruz to Dua Lipa gracing the red carpet.

Hosted by Vogue, the theme of the event was announced in September 2022, with Vogue adding additional details in January 2023. The magazine said that the theme will “examine the life - and creative legacy - of the late designer, who shaped the face of fashion for more than half a century,” and the main dress code will be in "honor" of Karl.

Throughout his seven-decade career, Karl Lagerfeld was known for offending people "right and left," as per The New York Times.

Jameela Jamil was one among many who criticized the decision, writing on Instagram that it was "distinctly hateful" how Lagerfeld has used his position to bring down marginalized groups and prominent people throughout the course of his career.

Although his impact and contributions to the fashion industry will live on, the designer's controversial ideas and beliefs have come up again because of the museum and Vogue's planned honor.

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Karl Lagerfeld made several controversial remarks throughout his career

Karl Lagerfeld has a lengthy history of making disparaging remarks about those who have experienced s*xual assault, immigration, and obesity, among other groups.

In an interview with the German magazine Focus in 2009, Lagerfeld said that “no one wants to see curvy women,” after getting to know that another publication, Brigitte, was planning on using models that are “real women.”

“You’ve got fat mothers with their bags of chips sitting in front of the television and saying that thin models are ugly. The world of beautiful clothing is about ‘dreams and illusions.’”

Karl Lagerfeld caused controversy in 2010 by taking pictures of model Claudia Schiffer wearing blackface and an Afro wig. In 2017, he made anti-immigrant remarks on a French TV program that referenced the Holocaust.

In another incident, while speaking to European fashion magazine Numero in 2018, he said that he was "fed up" with the Me Too movement. Explaining his stance, he said:

“What shocks me most in all of this are the starlets who have taken 20 years to remember what happened. I read somewhere that now you must ask a model if she is comfortable with posing. It’s simply too much; from now on, as a designer, you can’t do anything. 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. They’re recruiting even!”

Lagerfeld previously labeled Adele "a little too fat" and Heidi Klum "too heavy," among other things, and stated that Pippa Middleton "should only show her back" and that Coco Chanel wasn't "ugly" enough to be a feminist.

Moreover, commenting on Angela Merkel’s plan on opening Germany's borders to refugees from Syria, he said:

“One cannot — even if there are decades between them — kill millions of Jews so you can bring millions of their worst enemies in their place.”

While speaking to Time Magazine, the editor and writer of the newsletter, I <3 Mess, shared that the theme of the Met Gala 2023 is an effort to rewrite Karl Lagerfeld's legacy of who he really was.

“Karl produced an incredible amount of very influential and important work but he was also an a*shle with some really bad ideas and some really racist, misogynistic, and homophobic opinions about pretty much every topic imaginable. It’s easier for us to consume pretty things without reckoning with the horrible story behind them.”

In addition to being recognized at tonight's Met Gala, Karl Lagerfeld will also have a retrospective of his work on display starting on May 5.