Artists, musicians, actors, actresses, and photographers all draw inspiration from somewhere to improvise upon and get their creative juices going. One could say the same for fashion designers. And perhaps the one fashion designer that is famed to have numerous “muses” is Chanel’s Karl Lagerfeld. For a long time now, Karl Lagerfeld has always said that muses are “flexible in fashion”, adding that he works with more than one inspirational woman.
But let’s go back in time a little.
In the 1980s, the Hans Christian Andersen tale “The Emperor’s New Clothes” was published with drawings from Karl Lagerfeld himself. Between those early years, he had also cinched a design contract with Isetan, a giant Japanese firm, to create collections for both men and women through 30 licenses.
On top of that, Karl Lagerfeld also largely takes part in his editorial work where he photographs advertising campaigns for the houses under his direction (Chanel, Fendi, and his eponymous line) every season without skipping a beat.
And with that, the German-born designer seems to have done it all – from freelance designing to costume designing for theatrical productions, to drawing for books and claim-to-fame photography.
The question is, however, aside from passion, where does Karl Lagerfeld get his sources of inspiration from? Today, we’re pulling some of his muses into the limelight and introducing the esteemed designer’s personal favourites to you:
1. Alexa Chung
English model, TV presenter, and contributing editor at the world-famous British Vogue magazine, Alexa Chung now has one other thing to add to her booming resume. Not only did Vogue’s Anna Wintour describe her to be a phenomenon and compared her to the likes of supermodel Kate Moss, Alexa was also chosen to be one of the lucky few Karl Lagerfeld muses.
2. Avril Lavigne
In an interview, she once said that she knows she has a great body despite not wanting to fall into the “sex sells” trend to promote her music. Perhaps it was her spunkiness, then, that drew Karl Lagerfeld towards her. The 27-year-old Canadian singer-songwriter and her distinctive style has, for a few years now, served as a muse to Karl Lagerfeld.
3. Rachel Bilson
“The O.C.” actress, Rachel Bilson, has come a long way since the drama series. After having appear in several movies following the end of “The O.C.”, her fashion and sense of style became prominent in the eyes of the media, and soon caught the attention of Karl Lagerfeld. So much so that in early 2011, she was “adopted” as his muse and a three-part short film series launching “Magnum Ice Cream” featured Rachel, personally directed by him.
4. Blake Lively
Truth be told, it shocked the world when she was recently named as the face of Chanel’s “Mademoiselle” handbag line. On the other hand, Blake Lively would have probably given her peers something to really talk about if she was living in the real “Gossip Girl” world. The beautiful Californian, teenage icon actress is said to have inspired head of Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld, because she’s like a breath of fresh air!
So, ever wondered who are the lucky few ones on Unkle Karl’s speed dial? Wonder no more. We leave you now with a quote from the man himself.
“Beauty is also submitted to the taste of time, so a beautiful woman from the Belle Epoch is not exactly the perfect beauty of today, so beauty is something that changes with time.” – Karl Lagerfeld.
