What’s Going On With The Galliano Met Gala Controversy? 

 

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The Met Gala will no longer be showcasing an exhibition of fashion designer John Galliano due to antisemitic and racist remarks he made in the past. 

Galliano, the British designer and former creative director of Dior, made the comments in 2011 and was subsequently convicted by a French court. 

The Met’s decision to run the exhibition, John Galliano: Horizons, was criticised by donors, leading to the designer cancelling the showing. 

He announced the news on Instagram with a statement saying: “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.

“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.” 

 

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“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 the exhibition honouring my work would be painful for some,” he added.

Galliano received a hate crime conviction in 2011 after he was filmed using Jewish and Asian slurs in Paris. 

He received a suspended fine of €6,000 and was ordered to pay damages and court fees. The designer also was removed from his post at Dior following the incident and attended rehab for addiction. 

In his statement he expressed his “deepest gratitude to all those who have guided, supported and accompanied me throughout these fifteen years of sobriety and recovery from alcoholism and addiction.”

According to The New York Times, Met Gala organisers had been considering rescheduling the event, to avoid coinciding with Holocaust Remembrance Day. 

It is unclear how this will affect the Met Gala itself, which is scheduled for the first Monday of May next year.