It’s Official! The Met Gala 2023 Theme Is Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty

Every year the fashion industry looks forward to the abundance of events that take place, giving us that little bit of insight into the glamorous lifestyle and the Met Gala does just that. ICYMI, last Friday saw Vogue announce the highly-anticipated theme of the 2023 Met Gala, ‘Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty’, honouring the late German designer.

Taking place on the first Monday of May (of course, except 2021’s ball which was rearranged to September due to the COVID-19 pandemic), the annual event is hosted by Vogue’s Editor-in-Chief, Anna Wintour, to fundraise for New York’s famous Metropolitan Museum of Art. Also marking the beginning of the museum’s Spring showcase display, this year’s focus has similarities to other years, such as 2011’s ‘Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty’, which took place just a little over a year after he passed away.

What can we expect to see in May next year? The designer’s 65 year long career saw him working for some of the largest fashion houses in the world, from his time as Creative Director of Chanel, Creative Director of Fendi, his work for Chloé and the creation of his own eponymous ready-to-wear label, Karl Lagerfeld, we can expect to see looks that will honour his numerous roles that made him such an influential figure within the fashion industry.

The designer known for his signature white ponytail, dark sunglasses, and high neck collars, Lagerfeld worked for a number of brands such as Balmain and Patou, freelancing a few pieces each season for Chloé before designing their entire collection. His time at Chloé saw the designer play with styles from the 1930’s and 50’s, eliminating fabrics to make thinner garments that fit the comfortable layer-driven style that dominated throughout this decade. In 1967 Lagerfeld collaborated with Fendi to modernise their fur line with innovative designs.

The 80’s hit and although the designer had made a name for himself, he was about to become a global name as he was appointed the Creative Director of Chanel in 1982, a decade since the passing of iconic designer Coco Chanel. Here, Lagerfeld would go on to revamp the House’s style whilst still paying homage to Chanel herself, introducing padded shoulders, shortened and tightened skirts, raised heels and enlarging and minimising accessories. He played an important role in the fashion house’s history and was the face behind many of Chanel’s cult classic items, from bouclé tweed to the use of the globally-recognised interlocking CC’s, which led to him holding the position of Creative Director until 2019.

After much success at other brands, the eponymous Karl Lagerfeld brand was founded in 1984, channelling “intellectual sexiness” with his ready-to-wear pieces. Since the news broke, Monday night saw the brand introduce 77 exclusive editions of Karl’s white shirt design, each individually printed with his original sketches, with all proceeds donated to The Met.

However, the announcement of the Met Gala 2023 theme was challenged with divided opinions. Actress and presenter, Jameela Jamil posted to her Instagram detailing various controversial quotes made by the designer throughout the years on topics such as the plus size community, the Me Too movement, LGBTQ+ couples adopting children and Muslim refugees, which Jamil described these “cruel outburst” as “hateful”.

Many Twitter users also took to the platform to share their thoughts on the news, ‘We should not be celebrating a person who made fatphobic, racist, and sexist comments throughout his career.’ With another saying, ‘The Met choosing Karl Lagerfeld when they could’ve done Mugler is insanity to me.’

What are your thoughts on the chosen theme for next year’s Met Gala? We’d love to hear! Let us know over on our Instagram – @frowmagazine