The Karl Lagerfeld Museum Exhibit Themed After the 2023 Met Gala Is Now Open to the Public — What to Know

The first Monday in May has come and gone, and though all the A-listers have all put away their Met Gala outfits, your time to visit is only getting started. 

The Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art — which is the whole reason for the Met Gala, after all — opened its new spring exhibition, Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty, to the public on Friday.

“The exhibition explores Lagerfeld’s complex working methodology, tracing the evolution of his fashions from the two-dimensional to the three-dimensional,” Andrew Bolton, the Wendy Yu Curator in Charge at the institute, shared in a statement. “The fluid lines of his sketches found expression in recurring themes in his fashions, uniting his designs for Chanel, Chloé, Fendi, Patou, and his eponymous label, Karl Lagerfeld, creating a diverse and prolific body of work unparalleled in the history of fashion.”

The exhibit will be on display until July 16.

As the institute shared on its website, the exhibit showcases more than 200 objects, including sketches by Lagerfeld alongside the pieces that came to fruition.

But, the institute added, this won’t be any old art show. “...rather than a traditional retrospective, the show opens with introductory galleries that explore Lagerfeld’s early career, including being awarded the International Woolmark Prize in 1954 and his ensuing roles as a design assistant at Balmain and an artistic director of Patou, where he continued to refine his unique style of sketching.”

Galleries in the exhibition include one dedicated to premières d’atelier, or the seamstresses who brought Lagerfeld’s visions to life, and a video installation by filmmaker Baillee Walsh showing rare archival footage of Lagerfeld. 

“Karl Lagerfeld was one of the most captivating, prolific, and recognizable forces in fashion and culture, known as much for his extraordinary designs and tireless creative output as his legendary persona,” Max Hollein, Marina Kellen French Director of The Met, said. “This immersive exhibition unpacks his singular artistic practice, inviting the public to experience an essential part of Lagerfeld’s boundless imagination and passion for innovation.”

See more about the exhibition and plan a trip at metmuseum.org.