Key Points
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John Galliano has stepped away from his planned Met Gala exhibit.
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The Met, alongside Anna Wintour, has decided to cancel the Costume Institute’s show focused on Galliano amid backlash from his past racist and antisemitic remarks.
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Galliano called the decision the “best” choice and said, “I remain fully accountable for the pain caused by my words in the past.”
The Met Gala has decided to cancel their John Galliano exhibit, set for spring 2027, amid backlash over his past antisemitic remarks.
The Costume Institute was set to honor the British designer, who’s been the creative director of fashion houses Givenchy, Dior, and Maison Margiela, with the “John Galliano: Horizons” solo exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art beginning in May 2027. However, the Met announced Monday in a statement shared with Entertainment Weekly that the show, which was set to launch alongside Anna Wintour’s annual Met Gala, will be replaced by another exhibit to be announced at a later date.
“Following thoughtful discussions with John Galliano, we have together decided not to proceed with the exhibition,” Max Hollein, director and CEO of the museum, announced in a joint statement with Galliano, who added, “After much reflection and discussion with The Met and all those involved, I have decided, with great sadness, that it is best for the exhibition not to take place at this time. I remain fully accountable for the pain caused by my words in the past, particularly the hurt I caused to the Jewish and Asian communities, and I remain deeply sorry for it.”
In the statement, Wintour also said, perVogue, “John’s decision to ask the Museum to postpone the exhibition devoted to his work is very courageous and a measure of the man he is. I believe this is the right decision, and both he and the Museum have my full support. His soaring imagination, fed by a lifetime of curiosity and research, is matched by his exceptional craft. Cut, fit, the evocative line of a bias-cut dress, color—he’s a master of it all. Without one or the other, if his technique wasn’t equal to his storytelling talents, he wouldn’t be the premiere couturier of his generation. But he most certainly is. From the staged-on-a-shoestring feat that was his Fall 1994 show at the Sao Schlumberger Hotel Particulier in Paris to his tour de force swansong at Maison Margiela Artisanal for Spring 2024, Galliano gave fashion its most marvelous shows. The way that Christian Dior called Cristobal Balenciaga “the master of us all,” a generation of designers have looked to Galliano as the greatest. His impact reverberates across generations, not least of all with Dior’s current creative director Jonathan Anderson, who calls Galliano one of his heroes.”
Galliano shared his full statement on Instagram, posting on Monday, “I remain fully accountable for the pain caused by my words in the past, particularly the hurt I caused to the Jewish and Asian communities, and I remain deeply sorry. I understand that meaningful atonement is not achieved through an exhibition, institutional recognition or a single public gesture. It is a continuing responsibility, demonstrated through listening, learning and one’s conduct over time. I do not want the debate surrounding me to place the Met in a difficult position or to distract from the remarkable work of the Costume Institute. I also recognize and respect that an exhibition honoring my work would be painful for some.”
Galliano received severe backlash from the Jewish community and beyond due to his past antisemitic and racist statements. The designer was fired by Christian Dior in 2011 after video footage surfaced showing Galliano, who was inebriated, making antisemitic remarks in a Paris café in December 2010. He was arrested for allegedly assaulting a woman and making antisemitic and racist outbursts that included comments like “I love Hitler. People like you would be dead. Your mothers, your forefathers, would all be f—ing gassed.”
At the time, many celebrities, including Oscar winner Natalie Portman, who had an endorsement contract with Dior, condemned Galliano’s behavior. “I am deeply shocked and disgusted by the video of John Galliano’s comments that surfaced today,” she shared in a statement in 2011. “In light of this video, and as an individual who is proud to be Jewish, I will not be associated with Mr. Galliano in any way. I hope at the very least, these terrible comments remind us to reflect and act upon combating these still-existing prejudices that are the opposite of all that is beautiful.”
After the incident, Galliano was found guilty by a Paris court of a hate crime for public insults based on religion, race and ethnicity. He was sentenced to pay a total of 6,000 Euros ($8,400) in suspended fines and forced to pay damages and court fees. Dior also took swift and decisive action, letting go of Galliano days before the label’s fall-winter 2011 runway show in March. He was also ousted from his eponymous label, which was owned by Dior’s parent company.
Galliano retreated from public life for two years, during which he met with Jewish leaders and rabbis following the scandal and received blessings from groups like the Anti-Defamation League.
During testimony at his 2011 trial, Galliano claimed he had been under the influence of alcohol and prescription drugs when he made the controversial remarks and couldn’t recall the incidents in question.
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He referenced his substance abuse issues in his Met Gala statement on Monday.
“I would also like to express my deepest gratitude to all those who have guided, supported and accompanied me throughout those fifteen years of sobriety and recovery from alcoholism and addiction,” he shared. “Your wisdom, patience and humanity have helped me more than I can ever adequately express. I remain profoundly indebted to you for giving me, as you promised, a life better than I could ever have dreamt of.”
Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly
