Karl once said he’s like a fashion nymphomaniac who can never
achieve an orgasm. This overachieving mentality is what kept the
uber-talented designer for 36 years in Chanel. He wasn’t there to
do what Coco Chanel did, Karl was there to do what Coco Chanel
would do. And that played a key role in Chanel’s success. Now, as
he rises up the Fashion Olympus to meet his predecessor, he looks
upon his right hand Virginie Viard as she fills up Karl’s creative shoes
in the French fashion powerhouse. As remarkable as it sounds, the
name Karl Lagerfeld became sounder than the name Chanel. Whoever
was buying Chanel wasn’t because it was Chanel, but because it was
designed by the Kaiser. The monumental stages he created for the
shows became the zenith of his creativity, like when he turned the
emblematic Grand Palais in Paris into Germany’s Black Forest for the
Fall/Winter 2018 Show.
Florence Welch admits that she didn’t quite understand what she
was getting herself into when Karl Lagerfeld asked her to star in his
Spring/Summer 2012 aquatic-inspired Chanel show, where she sang
live from a giant shell. The pair first met following her performance
at a party hosted by the label.
THE FRENCH MISTRESS
THE MUSES
FLORENCE WELCH
