Saying Au Revoir to a True Legend

This week marks what has turned out to be a tremendously sad week in the realms of the fashion world as we learn that Karl Lagerfeld has died at the age of 85 (although his birthday has always been subject to dispute). It has come as a shock, despite Lagerfeld failing to make his habitual post-catwalk appearance at the end of Chanel's 2019 Haute Couture show due to illness.

Lagerfeld was best known for being the creative director of both Chanel and Fendi whilst simultaneously heading his self-named brand. After emigrating from Germany to France as a teenager, Lagerfeld designed at Balmain and the Chloé during the 1960s. Fashion was evidently in his blood, it's what he lived for and he had an unparalleled talent at it.

It feels somewhat strange to be referring referring to Lagerfeld in the past tense, but we're unfortunately going to have to get used to using it.

There are many things that rendered Lagerfeld a legend and I'll be exploring all of them in this post. This post is a dedication to the man who pioneered fashion, transformed the couture industry and created two of the most successful and globally-known luxury names in the entire world.

Although being globally recognised and praised for his outstanding influence on the fashion industry, Lagerfeld didn't always manage to receive the best headlines. He has made some rather controversial statements in regards to women's size and shape, usually throwing some shady remarks about curvy women. In this sense, he was considered as a fairly controversial figure with some very questionable views on women's beauty.

Nevertheless, he was a creative genius, who single-handedly kept the spirit of Gabrielle (Coco) Chanel very present within every single collection he produced. Although revolutionising the way Chanel was globally perceived, he stayed loyal to integrating the Chanel tweed, the Chanel suit, the two-toned pumps and the little black dress into today's designs. You could really feel Chanel's presence in the collection and that's what was so magical about Lagerfeld's creative ability.

Having to say goodbye to the man that has effectively made high fashion what it is today is heart breaking and I genuinely feel (and I'm surely not alone in my sentiment) as though we have lost one of the world's greatest talents. The success and growth of fashion industry is definitely due in part to the man himself.