Karl Lagerfeld – Long Live The King

Words – Justin Howard @Jthnomad

“What I like about photographs is that they capture a moment that’s gone forever, impossible to reproduce.” – Karl Lagerfeld

Karl Lagerfeld, the iconic German fashion designer famed for reinvigorating Chanel and reinventing fur at Fendi, has passed away in Paris.

Hailed by Vogue Magazine as the “unparalleled interpreter of the mood of the moment,” as a fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld is a master of reinvention. Lagerfeld has expressed the ability to transform himself serval times to fit the visual brand of each of the different fashion houses he has controlled during his long career. Karl Lagerfeld was the creative director of Chanel, the Italian-based Fendi and his own self named line at the time of his death.

Fun Facts – Designer Karl Lagerfeld

~ Moved to Paris at the age of 14 to follow his dreams of fashion.

~ In 1984 Karl launched his own Karl Lagerfeld label – a line that he says embodies “intellectual sexiness.”

~ Owned a bookstore in Paris, where you can buy books of Karl’s art photography.

From Germany With Love

The details of Karl Lagerfeld’s early life remain wrapped in an air of mystery, what is known is Karl was born in Hamburg, Germanyduring the 1930’s. Karl’s father, Christian Lagerfeld, had made a fortune before his birth by introducing condensed milk to Germany.

Karl was born Karl Otto Lagerfeld, yet during one of his many self reinventions early in his career he dropped the ‘Otto’ from his name in order to be what he calls “more commercial.”

Lagerfeld was brought up in a wealthy home, where talk around the dinner table regularly turned towards topics like religion and philosophy. Karl’s father, Christian and his mother, Elizabeth encouraged their to take part in such conversations.

Karl’s father did his best to shield his family from the turmoil of Hitler and the Nazi rise to power in Germany during the 1930’s. Christian Lagerfeld moved the whole family to the outer reaches of Northern Germany, where Karl recounts he knew nothing of the Nazis movement.

His mother, Elizabeth, often found Karl cutting out pictures from her fashion magazines at an early age. It was this interest in design and a eye for fashion that had Lagerfeld being critical of what his peers wore to school.

The Start

Karl got his first taste of high fashion once his family returned to the cosmopolitan world of Hamburg, Germany. Wanting to experience to the world of high fashion, Karl made the decision to move to Paris when he was 14 years old. It was with the help of his father that Lagerfeld enrolled in the private art academy Lycee Montaigne in Paris, where Karl majored in drawing.

In 1955, after finishing his schooling, Karl submitted a series of sketches and fabric samples to an International Wool Secretariat contest, where he won first place in the coat section. It was here Karl met his life long friend, fellow designer Yves Saint-Laurent.

“I won on coats, but actually I like designing coats least of all. What I really love are little black dresses,” Karl Lagerfeld was quoted as saying.

The French designer Pierre Balmain hired Lagerfeld as a junior assistant and next as a design apprentice. Pierre was a demanding boss, and Karl was only there for three years. After experiencing being the creative director for Jean Patouin 1961, which ended badly as the press booed his runway shows, Karl decided he need to have the freedom to create his own designs so he left.

From Chloe to Fendi

After branching out on his own, Karl went to consult Madame Zereakian, famous as Christian Dior’s fortune teller who told Lagerfeld “I’d succeed in fashion and perfume.” With this blessing, Karl teamed up with fashion house Tiziani in 1963, where he started designing couture, then shifted to ready-to-wear. Karl recalls “”When they wound up with 90 outfits, Tiziani threw caution and invitations to the winds, borrowed Catherine the Great’s jewels from Harry Winston, and opened his salon with a three-night wingding.” One admirer of the Tiziani line was film star Elizabeth Taylor, who stared wearing it in 1966.

Lagerfeld began designing as a freelancer for the French fashion house Chloe in 1964, crafting only a few pieces each season. By 1973 Karl had completed his first full collection for Chloe featuring a piece he called a “surprise” skirt that was an ankle-length, pleated silk, and so loose on the model it hid the fact it was actually silk pants. Lagerfeld’s look was inspired by film star Carmen Miranda’s trademark look of long dress with bra tops.

1972 saw the start of Karl’s long term collaboration with the Italian fashion house Fendiwhere Lagerfeld designed all the fur pieces.

Just as Karl had become a major star in the fashion world, favored by the press who chronicled his ever-changing tastes and social life, he enjoyed the company of other culture stars like his good friend Andy Warhol.

Chanel And Beyond

Karl Lagerfeld achieved what few believed possible in the 1980s when he turned what was seen as a dead brand, Chanel, back to life by launching it as a ready-to-wear line.

In 2002 Lagerfeld partnered with Renzo Rosso, the founder of Diesel, to design a special denim line for his self-labeled collection, Lagerfeld Gallery. The new denim collection was designed by Karl, produced by the Diesel Creative team, and shown at Lagerfeld’s runway show during Paris Fashion Week in 2003. During the first week it was available at select Diesel and Lagerfeld retail outlets – it sold out by 90% with an average price point of $500.

Renzo Rosso, after the runway show in Paris, told the press “I am honored to have met this fashion icon of our time. Karl represents creativity, tradition and challenge, and the fact that he thought of Diesel for this collaboration is a great gift.”

When Karl partnered up with Swedish fashion brand H&M, it was an overnight success. H&M offered a limited collection of pieces Lagerfeld had designed for women and men. In only two days after it was offered global through the various H&M retail outlets, supplies had run dry.

Since 1984 Lagerfeld had used his own line Lagerfeld Gallery as an outlet for his own creativity, built around his ideal of “intellectual sexiness.” The collection developed a visual brand message of being quality tailoring and bold ready-to-wear pieces like cardigan jackets in vivid color palettes. By 2005 Lagerfeld sold the label to Tommy Hilfiger.

“I am very much down to earth. Just not this earth”– Fashion Designer Karl Lagerfeld.