FASHION FALLOUT

John Galliano Backs Out of Met Gala After Backlash

Jewish leaders had expressed outrage over the museum spotlighting a designer notorious for an antisemitic rant.

British fashion designer John Galliano has pulled out of a planned exhibition to honor his work at the Metropolitan Museum of Art following intense backlash.

“After much reflection and discussion with all those involved, I have decided, with great sadness, that it is best for the exhibition not to take place at this time,” Galliano wrote in a statement. The move came after an uproar over the designer being given such a prestigious spotlight after infamously going on an antisemitic tirade years earlier.

“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,” he continued.

The display would have been the centerpiece exhibit for the Met Gala.

In recent days, public outrage had erupted over the museum featuring Galliano, who was convicted of a hate crime in 2011 after a video surfaced of him making antisemitic remarks in a Paris cafe.

Play Video

Galliano’s self removal from the show comes as Met trustees and board members were considering changing the date of the prestigious Gala.

Its current date of May 3 is also Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust and Heroism Remembrance Day. The plans to change the date were a part of the efforts by Met organizers to assuage concerns over the honoring of Galliano.

The New York Times reported that the museum has gotten pushback from “Jewish leaders in New York and beyond,” with donors threatening to pull contributions to the museum if the exhibition went on as planned.

The British designer served as creative director of Givenchy and Dior before he was fired when the video surfaced.

In recent days many local New York City politicians condemned the Met’s decision to honor Galliano.

On Sunday, a spokesperson for New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said: “John Galliano’s repeated use of antisemitic language is vile. The Mamdani administration recognizes that the Met’s decision to honor him has caused pain and anger among many Jewish New Yorkers.”

The Met said in a statement Monday: “Information on a new spring Costume Institute exhibition and the 2027 Met Gala will be announced at a later date.”

Anna Wintour, lead chairperson of the Met Gala and also a close friend of Galliano’s, wrote on Monday, “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.”

---

Lauren HartleyBreaking News Intern

---

Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here.