Karl Lagerfeld did not view fashion as art. Nor did he dwell in the history of his career or life. with a 60-plus-year reign, It is incredible that the infiniteness of the line is longer than was Lagerfeld’s continuance. He was a visionary because he looked forward, collaborated and constantly learned. But unlocking his creativeness and the beauty that extended from it requires a more intricate explication.

This year’s Costume Institute at the Met will host Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty. Unlike the Met Gala, the museum exhibit focuses on his work instead of his life to avoid the rabbit hole of controversy. Aside from Chanel since the 1980’s, he designed for preeminent houses like Fendi since the 1960’s and Chloé in the 1970s. Lagerfeld retained each brand’s identity while adding a bit of a wave.

Inspired by artist William Hogarth’s “line of beauty or grace”, Lagerfeld’s process of creativity is emphasized. The lines that signified his designs in his sketches are surveyed alongside the garments. some were inspired by his dreams, others by technology and space travel. Hogarth beautifully and accurately wrote that for comprehensive appreciation of a work of art, the whole subject from inside and out should be seen in the concept of a shell covered in threads.

Here we look at how Karl Lagerfeld aligned with William Hogarth’s fundamentals of beauty.

“Paradox: a seemingly absurd or self-contradictory statement or proposition that when investigated or explained may prove to be well founded or true”

In The Analysis of Beauty (1753), Hogarth did two things: defined beauty in art from the viewer’s perspective and outlined six characteristics that influence beauty. He hypothesized that one type of line in a creative work is the most beautiful. Specifically, out of 7 lines of varying degrees of curvature, line 4, or the serpentine S-shaped line, is the line of beauty and most important in an impelling work of art. According to Hogarth, non-linearity implemented with hand-sketching generates dynamism.

From William Hogarth’s *The* *Analysis of Beauty,* seven lines are interpreted for their ability to be evocative. Line 4 is the middle, the average but not average, not too extreme, not too much or little of anything. Balanced enough as not to be disruptive. Boring? (Image: AKJAM Publishing)

Lagerfeld was known for his sketches. His collaborators were seamstresses, whose exquisite expertise brought to life his 2D sketches. This exhibit analyzes the lines of KL’s designs, from sketches to the corresponding garments. The mathematical origin of lines make it imperative to add up the attributes that made the designer exceptional. A line is just a line until a few curves and arches are added.

Before considering lines, Hogarth outlined the fundamental principles of beauty. If we consider the concept of wholeness presented in The Analysis of Beauty, then it is impractical to separate the artist from the art. The six parameters that constitute beauty align with KL’s persona, which was an extension of his work and vice versa. The resulting paradox was inevitable.

Analysis of Karl Lagerfeld’s Beauty

Fitness

The proper use of an object serves to retain beauty. Understanding luxury, Lagerfeld fit perfectly into the worlds of fashion and design. The partnership between creativity and decisiveness delivered memorable innovations to historic establishments like Fendi and Chanel. Applying his cultivated skills in several areas demonstrated extensive intellect and irreproachable polish. KL’s life and work were neat and superficial, respectively, producing the perfect marriage between industry and art.

Variety

Like the calculated designs on butterflies and flowers, a touch of ornamentation delights the visual senses. In between back-to-back collections, Lagerfeld transformed interior landscapes. His cognitive creative process may have appeared to work in disparate realms, but these projects intersected through attenuation and variegation.

Fendi 1985

Fendi 1982

Monoco 1980s

Symmetry

The duality KL lived by and incorporated in his collections resulted in the beauty ascribed by uniformity. He displayed aristocracy , but loved frankfurters and Coca-Cola. Nine dichotomous themes are put forth in the exhibition: masculine/feminine, romantic/military, Rococo/classical, high/low, historical/futuristic, geometric/abstract, and floral/geometric. He merged them harmoniously while many leave them detached in a continuation of disconnect between opposite spheres.

McFrankfurter

Diet Coke

“Simplicity without variety, is wholly insipid.”

— William Hogarth

Simplicity

Like a pyramid and leaf, Lagerfeld did not disrupt elegance with perplexity. This allowed the eye to flow through the whole of the work. He said that he did not rationalize his creativity. Why think about it? Just do it. He also did not reveal himself to the public outside of his caricature. Limiting the theme of the exhibit to the realization of his detailed sketches simplifies notions of what it, the designer and his controversies, all means.

Lagerfeld’s sketches primarily consisted of straight and curved lines. His premiers were able to interpret the drawings to the millimeter. This is the designer at Chanel in 1984. (Image: Vogue)

Intricacy

We love the chase and shock value. What will Karl do and say next? Both his pleasing designs, magnificent shows and triggering persona added to the mystique. We are constantly pursuing the point where KL’s lines meet.

KL wrote a supportive note to Kim Kardashian after saying a robbery was due to her flashiness and that Eastern Europeans were transforming Paris into a criminal den. This was after the innovative Chanel Data Center RTW Spring 2017 show in October 2016.

“This is technology. But with the lingerie, it’s intimate technology!”

— Karl Lagerfeld (Data Center Show)

Quantity

Lagerfeld said he worked at an “Olympic level” and his doctor called him “superhuman”. The number of collections within short time frames alone is astonishing. But also simultaneously maintaining the success and allure of two top houses, designing for his own brand, and embracing other creative projects spanning architecture and photography. KL’s endeavors were diversified without going overboard into an ocean of ridiculousness. Proportion was fundamental to his designs and public persona.

Fendi 2015

Chanel 2015

The Science

In 2022, a small study found that although line 4 was the most eye-catching to viewers, line 5 was a close runner up. Indeed, 70 participants were not inclined to any line too straight or curved. Lines that are too straight bore the eye and those too curvy are perceived as ungraceful or awkward. This may be due to the fact that our brains are wired to find symmetry most attractive. Though preference was determined, researchers still could not figure out what establishes beauty to the waved line.

Digitized versions of Hogarth’s lines were viewed by participants. Line 4 and 5 were nearly equally favored. (Image: Hübner and Ufken 2022)

Bottom Line

One must be inspired by the world, art, society, technology, dreams.

To be successful, art and its communication must be evocative. Along the same lines, emotions simmer in times of reshaping beauty standards. With flaws and perfections, Karl Lagerfeld serves as the artwork in this year’s Costume Institute exhibit. Out of the many lines within a form, one of them is the most aesthetically agreeable. The viewer is responsible for what they see. Some kid somewhere from Lyon to Mississippi to Belarus to Curacao to Xiamen is picking at the lock of the treasure chest that holds how Karl did what he did- creative designs, innovative shows and volume of work- so that they can one day do it. It is impossible to escape the influences of subtle intricacies. Why waves are more beautiful than curves is unknown. That remains the mystique of Karl Lagerfeld.