Cats, pearls and camellias at the Met Gala for Lagerfeld - Lifestyle

Cats, pearls and camellias paraded on the

the controversial German designer who died in 2019 and to whom the museum on Fifth Avenue dedicated its Costume Institute's exhibition of the year.

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(HANDLE)

Opens to the public on May 5, preceded by the Gala for 600 celebrities, the latest of which to arrive, well behind schedule, was

in a white cape over faille gown by

designed especially for her by Pierpaolo Piccioli: 5-metre train and on the mantle 30 camellias made up of 500 petals sewn by 30 tailors from the atelier.

The last to arrive last year was

with the by now strange-known Marilyn Monroe's mermaid dress: this time the influencer friend of Lagerfeld (who, however, once made her cry) opted for an item of pearls only draped over the body by Daniel Roseberry for

.

Long strands of fake pearls were a favorite motif for Coco Chanel - a style code Lagerfeld turned into a brand symbol, so other stars came on board, including Serena Williams (in Thom Browne, pregnant with second

) ,

who took the theme to the extreme: thongs and platform boots and the body covered in silver paint encrusted with crystals and pearls glued to the face that transformed the face into that of a feline.

Body art work by makeup artist Pat McGrath

it was a tribute to Choupette, the beloved Burmese cat that Lagerfeld bequeathed part of his fortune and who also inspired

and prosthetic face to accentuate the feline look) and

in a cat suit from which he then removed the head revealing who was hiding underneath.

The catwalk, disturbed by an uninvited cockroach which distracted the photographers waiting for Rihanna, was not interrupted by protests even if, a few steps from the Met, protesters for the climate and housing raised slogans and pitchforks against the millionaires of the party (the entrance ticket has risen this year from 30 to 50 thousand dollars per seat).

The limelight has not erased the controversy because the exhibition, organized by the curator of the Costume Institute Andrew Bolton, glossed over some of the stylist's complexities as a man.

    In a 65-year career,

for fashion houses from Patou to Chloe, Fendi to Chanel, plus the line named after him.

    He loved to provoke, especially lately, by ridiculing fat women (like singer Adele a decade ago).

He didn't like #MeToo, "shocked" by "these starlets who took 20 years to remember".

And then: "If you don't want your panties taken off, don't be a model, go to a convent".

    Karl "was a complicated man", admitted the creative director of the Conde Nast group,

who arrived at the gala arm in arm with the British actor Bill Nighy of Living, explaining that The Line of Beauty review, created by bringing together 200 signed by Karl focuses on Lagerfeld's work, not his biography.