If Anna Wintour, the all-powerful queen of fashion from the pedestal of Vogue, believed herself invulnerable, she has now discovered that her influence had a limit. Not even she is untouchable.
Designer John Galliano and the Metropolitan Museum of New York (Met) announced this Monday that the exhibition planned to highlight the designer’s work, which was to be held in conjunction with the Met Gala of 2027, will not take place, after weeks of criticism and controversy over his antisemitic stances years ago. But memory does not forget.
The designer stated in a social media post on Monday that, after “much reflection and conversation with all involved,” he had decided “with great sadness that the best thing is that the exhibition does not take place at this time.”
The institution confirmed in a statement that the “spring 2027 exhibition dedicated to his four-decade career will not proceed as planned.” That annual exhibition is the reason for the famous red carpet of the gala held every first Monday of May.
The decision to highlight Galliano’s work, known for his theatrical and dramatic designs, sparked great controversy earlier this month due to his history of antisemitic and racist remarks. These statements led to his dismissal from Christian Dior in 2011 and a hate crime conviction in France.
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Both Wintour and the museum knew their decision seemed to cross a red line, at a time of rising antisemitism in the United States and in New York, the city with the most Jews outside Israel. They knew it and that is why they summoned several rabbis to give their blessing. But they turned to progressive leaders who have little influence in the more conservative and predominant part.
“I continue to fully accept responsibility for the pain caused by my words in the past, especially for the harm I caused to the Jewish and Asian communities, and I remain deeply sorry,” Galliano emphasized in his Monday statement.
The Met reported that it will announce later the details of a new spring exhibition of the Costume Institute, as well as the theme of that 2027 gala.
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