Fashion fans have shared their disappointment and criticisms after the theme for the 2023 Met Gala was revealed.
The annual fundraising ball has always been a hot ticket in the fashion world, but the rise of social media combined with efforts to pull off ever-impressive outfits means there are more and more eyes on the event each time it rolls around.
Each year brings with it a new theme, tasking some of Hollywood's biggest names to show up in something both fitting and conversation-starting, and over the years we've seen everything from red carpet outfit changes to second heads.
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This year, the theme for the Met Gala is 'Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty’.
Lagerfeld was a German fashion designer and a regular attendee at The Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute. He designed clothes for brands like Chloé, Fendi and Chanel, as well as under his own brand, and died in 2019.
The theme aims to honour Lagerfeld's contributions to the fashion world, but many people have found the choice a controversial one.
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Lagerfeld has been accused of being fatphobic, racist, and misogynistic in comments made during his career, with one example of such behaviour taking place in a 2009 interview with German magazine Focus, where he said that 'no one wants to see curvy women'.
“You’ve got fat mothers with their bags of chips sitting in front of the television and saying that thin models are ugly,” he said in the interview. “The world of beautiful clothing is about ‘dreams and illusions'.”
The same year, Lagerfeld told Harper’s Bazaar Coco Chanel 'wasn’t ugly enough to be a feminist'.
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Actor Jameela Jamil called attention to Lagerfeld's problematic behaviour in an Instagram post last year which criticised the decision to have him as the theme for the 2023 Met Gala.
"This man... was indeed, supremely talented, but used his platform [in] such a distinctly hateful way, mostly towards 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," she wrote.
Jamil questioned why Lagerfeld was the man the Met was celebrating, and after sharing the post again more recently many people agreed.
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"THANK YOU. I’m so infuriated that they continue to deify him," one person commented, while another added: "AMEN!!! Finally someone who speaks the truth !!!"
Another critic of the theme posted: "I am a person who thinks Karl Lagerford’s [sic] designs are gorgeous but can accept that having an entire f**king MET gala dedicated to him is the wrong move. #MetGala."
The Twitter account for 'High Fashion Twitter Met Gala' has also announced they would not be holding their usual coverage of the event as a result of the theme, writing: “As we approach the first Monday of May, the hf twitter met gala team would like to announce that we will not be celebrating this year’s met gala as our values don’t align with the selection of Karl Lagerfeld as the theme. We hope to celebrate with our community again soon.”
In spite of the controversy, a number of famous faces are set to walk the red carpet at the gala which takes place today (1 May) in New York City.
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UNILAD has reached out to the Met for comment.
Emily Brown