Karl Lagerfeld

Karl Lagerfeld was born on September 10, 1933, in Hamburg, Germany. He died on February 19, 2019, in Paris, France, was a German fashion designer and photographer who is best known for reviving Chanel, the iconic French fashion business founded by Coco Chanel in the early twentieth century. In 1952, Lagerfeld relocated to Paris. In 1954, he earned first prize in the French International Wool Secretariat (now the International Woolmark Prize) for his coat design, and in 1955, he was hired by Pierre Balmain, who produced his design.

He became artistic director of Jean Patou's fashion house three years later. In 1964, he moved to Italy to study art history. But he was soon working as a freelance designer for firms including Chloé (for whom he designed collections from 1964 to 1983 and again from 1992 to 1997), Krizia, Valentino, and shoemaker Charles Jourdan. Fendi, an expensive Italian design brand, appointed him as a consultant director in 1967 to revamp the company's fur line. His creations were revolutionary. He pioneered the use of pelts such as mole, rabbit, and squirrel, which had never been used in high-fashion designs previously. Throughout his career, he remained with Fendi. Lagerfeld created his first couture collection for Chanel in 1983, and after a year at the house, he founded his own label in 1984.

Lagerfeld received the British Fashion Award for Outstanding Achievement in 2015, and he was the subject of a retrospective exhibition at the Bundeskunsthalle in Bonn, Germany.

Nationality: Germany
Born: September 10, 1933
Died: February 19, 2019
Career: Creative direction of the Chanel and Fend