Karl Lagerfeld Has Passed Away at 85
Karl Lagerfeld, the longtime creative director of Chanel and Fendi, passed away in Paris on February 19. He was 85.
The German-born designer, who was raised outside Hamburg, moved to Paris to work in fashion, under designers Pierre Balmain, Jean Patou, and Chloé's Gaby Aghion. He started at Fendi in 1965, where he would remain until his death. He took over Chanel in 1983.
"Everybody said, ‘Don’t touch it, it’s dead, it will never come back,'" Lagerfeld told The New Yorker in 2007 about the Chanel job. “But by then I thought it was a challenge."
"When I took over, nobody talked about [Coco Chanel]," he said to The Cut this past December. "I reinvented the references, but that’s a good thing, no? Everybody said to me, 'Don’t touch it. It’s dead,' because 35 years ago, old labels were old labels. Now everybody wants to revive a label, and some of them, I don’t think it’s a good idea. But this was before Tom Ford and Gucci."
He was not only a mainstay of the fashion industry, but Lagerfeld was also one of the most prolific designers in the business. He designed around 10 collections a year for Chanel, typically stepping out at the end of his elaborate runway presentations—a small-scale Eiffel Tower, a supermarché, and a space station have been staged at the Grand Palais in Paris—to take a bow. (He skipped his most recent Métiers d'Arts show in New York and couture show in Paris, citing health reasons; Chanel's creative studio director, Virginie Viard, represented him instead, on both occasions.) According to Business of Fashion, Chanel's operating profit was $2.69 billion.
On a personal level, the designer had an instantly recognizable look, which was part of his personal brand for decades: white collared shirt, black suit and tie, sunglasses, brooch, and driving gloves. (It was a recurring element in his more affordable namesake line, Karl Lagerfeld Paris.) And though his work was celebrated, Lagerfeld attracted criticism over the years for his comments on topics such as immigration, #MeToo, and weight.
Designers including Donatella Versace, Victoria Beckham, and others have taken to social media to remember the designer.
Many of Lagerfeld's muses, like Diane Kruger and Carla Bruni, also posted tributes.
Chanel released an official statement on Lagerfeld's passing this morning: "It is with deep sadness that the House of Chanel announces the passing of Karl Lagerfeld, the Creative Director for the Chanel Fashion House since 1983. An extraordinary creative individual, Karl Lagerfeld reinvented the brand’s codes created by Gabrielle Chanel: the Chanel jacket and suit, the little black dress, the precious tweeds, the two-tone shoes, the quilted handbags, the pearls and costume jewelry. Regarding Gabrielle Chanel, he said, 'My job is not to do what she did, but what she would have done. The good thing about Chanel is it is an idea you can adapt to many things.' A prolific creative mind with endless imagination, Karl Lagerfeld explored many artistic horizons, including photography and short films. The House of Chanel benefited from his talent for all the branding campaigns related to Fashion since 1987. Finally, one cannot refer to Karl Lagerfeld without mentioning his innate sense of repartee and self-mockery."
Executives for the company also expressed their condolences.
“Thanks to his creative genius, generosity and exceptional intuition, Karl Lagerfeld was ahead of his time, which widely contributed to the House of Chanel’s success throughout the world," Alain Wertheimer, the CEO of Chanel, said. "Today, not only have I lost a friend, but we have all lost an extraordinary creative mind to whom I gave carte blanche in the early 1980s to reinvent the brand.”
Bruno Pavlovsky, the president of fashion of Chanel, added: “Fashion show after fashion show, collection after collection, Karl Lagerfeld left his mark on the legend of Gabrielle Chanel and the history of the House of Chanel. He steadfastly promoted the talent and expertise of Chanel’s ateliers and Métiers d’Art, allowing this exceptional know-how to shine throughout the world. The greatest tribute we can pay today is to continue to follow the path he traced by—to quote Karl—‘continuing to embrace the present and invent the future.’”
Fendi, meanwhile, said it was "immensely affected" by Lagerfeld's passing: "From his first days at FENDI, the longest relationship in the fashion world between a designer and a fashion house, Karl Lagerfeld was a true visionary in everything he conjured up, from the advertising campaigns to his ready-to-wear and Couture Collections. He dared to push boundaries, a modern day genius with a unique sense of aesthetic fearlessness, who influenced a whole generation of designers. Thanks to the unparalleled creativity of Karl Lagerfeld, in collaboration with Silvia Venturini Fendi, FENDI is today synonymous with timeless quality, strong tradition, relentless experimentation and daring creativity. His passing marks an unimaginable loss at FENDI."
"Working with Karl Lagerfeld at FENDI allowed me to catch a glimpse of the secret of the continuous renewal of the House," Serge Brunschwig, CEO and chairman of Fendi, added. "I profoundly admire Karl’s immense culture, his ability to rejuvenate at all times, to taste all the arts, to not overlook any style, along with a persistent refusal to turn to his past, to look at his work in a mirror. He was restless and his exigent nature would never leave him. The show was just ending that Karl would always say, 'And now number next!' He leaves us an enormous heritage, an inexhaustible source of inspiration to continue. Karl will be immensely missed by myself and all the FENDI people."
Lagerfeld will be succeeded by Viard at Chanel. His replacement at Fendi has yet to be announced.
