Karl Lagerfeld once created a Walmart-sized "Chanel Shopping Center" to show off his ready-to-wear collection. It featured aisle upon aisle of luxury foods labeled "one for the price of two."
Immediately after it had been showcased by models, guests raided the shelves. Rihanna posed in a shopping cart, and Keira Knightley looked on amazed.
"Luxury should be worn like you're going to the supermarket. It's the pop art of the 21st century," Lagerfeld said, his eyes barely visible behind his enigmatic shades.
Well-wishers arrive to lay flowers in tribute to fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel's headquarters in Paris, France, Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2019. Chanel's iconic couturier, Karl Lagerfeld, whose accomplished designs as well as trademark white ponytail, high starched collars and dark enigmatic glasses dominated high fashion for the past 50 years, has died. He was around 85 years old. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)
The show was the type of presentation that came to define much of Lagerfeld's six-decade career at the top of fashion.
When Chanel fell into decline following Coco Chanel's death in the 1970s, its new owners looked for a larger-than-life designer to wake up the house from its creative coma. The German-born Lagerfeld, a contemporary of Yves Saint Laurent with a strict ponytail and tight collar, was just the man.
As Chanel creative director from 1983 until his death on Tuesday, he quickly transformed the house into a billion-dollar industry leader, a position it retains today.
Lagerfeld, who had been poached from Chloe, used his creative scalpel to modernize the house's signature skirt suits and tweed in the '80s as the house expanded internationally, opening some 40 boutiques around the world in that decade.
His work ethic was legendary. Beyond Chanel, he also began working with Italian fashion house Fendi in 1965 and held the top job at the LVMH-owned brand since 1977.
Yet Lagerfeld will be remembered as much for his showmanship, eccentric personality and acid tongue as for his youthful designs.
Donning sunglasses and gloves, he evolved into "Kaiser Karl" — a nickname that referred to his demanding character, put-downs and uncompromising standards.
"Sweatpants are a sign of defeat. You lost control of your life so you bought some sweatpants," he once declared. Another time, he dismissed Saint Laurent as "provincial."
The sheer ambition of his fashion shows was legendary, and they became especially influential in an age in which images are beamed around the world at the click of a button.
His Chanel collections were invariably the biggest on the Paris Fashion Week calendar. Chanel, it was said, put the "show" in "fashion show."
Lagerfeld was also an anachronism, dressing in a punk, baroque style and defying political correctness — almost proudly.
He got into hot water for calling singer Adele "a little too fat" and said he didn't like the face of Pippa Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge's sister.
"She should only show her back," he advised.
In another interview, he created a furor by criticizing Kim Kardashian as being too flashy with her money in Paris following her 2016 robbery.
Despite the sharp remarks, Lagerfeld remained surprisingly warm in person and always kept a sparkle in his eye. Jokes were delivered with a smile, even when they were clearly derogatory.
Evidence of his generous spirit could be seen in his relationships with reporters. Well into his 80s, he was unique in Paris for holding interviews for over an hour following each Chanel show. He would flit seamlessly between English, French, Italian and his native German.
Of his feelings following a collection, he once said: "I'm a kind of fashion nymphomaniac who never gets an orgasm."
The love of his life, his cat Choupette, was also testament to his kind, if eccentric, heart. He wore her likeness as a pendant at one show and acknowledged that she has at least two maids.
She is spoiled, "much more than a child could be," he said in 2013, revealing that he took her to the vet nearly every 10 days.
Like a proud parent, Lagerfeld told a magazine that Choupette earned more than $3 million in 2014 for advertising campaigns.
In recent seasons, Lagerfeld looked increasingly frail. When he failed to take his usual bow at the house's January couture collection, sadness filled the faces of guests, some of whom had grown gray covering his long career.
For a 2012 couture display, Lagerfeld built a futuristic jetliner, with the aisle serving as the runway for models and guests gathered in "Star Trek"-style seating.
Lagerfeld was supposed to be in the vessel's cockpit giving interviews. But he was nowhere to be found. His staff panicked that their chief had somehow slipped away just when he was needed most. They began a frantic search.
"Karl's moved to the south part," crackled their radios on a loop as they dashed around the elaborate set.
Then, as quickly as he vanished, Lagerfeld reappeared near the jetliner's entry hub.
Amid the spectacle, Lagerfeld was an island of calm, sipping Diet Coke from a silver platter.
Thomas Adamson has been Paris fashion writer for The Associated Press since 2012 and interviewed Lagerfeld around 20 times. He can be followed at: www.twitter.com/ThomasAdamson_K .
PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron warned Thursday that Europe could “die” if it fails to build its own robust defense as Russia’s war in Ukraine rages on, or if it fails to undertake major trade and economic reforms to compete with China and the U.S.
Macron urged Europeans to become more ambitious in a fast-changing world to face the challenges of war, fierce trade competition, energy scarcity, climate change and increasing authoritarianism.
In a nearly two-hour speech at Sorbonne University in Paris, Macron said that the continent is divided and “too slow and lacks ambition” at a time when the 27-member European Union needs to become a superpower, defend its own borders and speak with one voice if it wants to survive and thrive.
“Our Europe today is mortal,” Macron said. “It can die and that depends solely on our choices,” he added. He called on people to make those choices now because, “it’s today that Europe is between war and peace.”
Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, now in its third year, is an existential threat and Europe isn't armed enough to defend itself when “confronted by a power like Russia that has no inhibitions, no limits,” Macron said.
‘Our ability to ensure our security is at stake," Macron said. “Russia mustn’t be allowed to win.”
Europe now has the “good fortune” of having the Biden administration’s commitment to supporting Ukraine, Macron said. But, in a year of key elections around Europe, in the U.S. and elsewhere, support may fragment or disappear entirely, he added.
“Europe must become capable of defending its interests, with its allies by our side whenever they are willing, and alone if necessary,” Macron said.
Strong armies, a European rapid intervention program and force, tanks, a missile shield and other weapons, produced in Europe, will need the support of “a joint diplomatic force that will speak with one voice and build bridges with Africa and Latin America,” the French leader said.
“Only then will Europe show that it's not a United States’ lap dog, and that it also knows how to talk to other regions of the world,” he said.
France has been a firm supporter of Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression, and Macron has often clashed with other Western leaders as he has insisted that Europe must stand by the country at any cost. The French president alarmed European leaders by saying recently that sending Western troops into Ukraine to shore up its defenses shouldn’t be ruled out.
Referring to trade practices of China and the U.S., Macron said “the two world powers have decided not to respect the rules of global trade” by shoring up protections and subsides while Europe’s industry remains open and is stuck in overregulation.
“Let’s do the same, we are in competition,” Macron said.
“We must buy faster, we must produce more and we must buy more that is made in Europe. That is key,” Macron said.
Thursday's speech came less than two months before a pivotal European Parliament election.
Macron, an avid advocate of a united and assertive Europe, also rallied support for his centrist Renaissance party before the June 6-9 vote as far-right parties lead the moderate coalitions in the polls. He called for safeguarding democratic values as the “authoritarian model” was becoming “more popular” across the continent.
The war in Ukraine and immigration are top priorities for European Union voters, according to polls. Far-right parties have gained support by criticizing Macron’s government policies on both issues. Macron acknowledged divisions on immigration policies, including on asylum and deportation rules for those who have arrived to Europe illegally.
He emphasized the need for an effective response and Europe-wide coordination for curbing illegal immigration, closer cooperation with immigrants' countries of origin and a unified, relentless fight against human traffickers.
Macron criticized the idea of striking an agreement, as Britain as done, with countries in Africa and elsewhere to transfer immigrants there.
“This is a betrayal of our values that ultimately leads us to dependency on other counties,” Macron said.
The British government earlier this week approved a law allowing the deportation of some migrants who enter the country illegally to Rwanda.
Macron lost his majority in France’s most influential house of parliament, the National Assembly, after the 2022 election to the far-left coalition and the far-right National Rally party.
The social situation in France remains tense as Paris prepares to host the Olympic Games this summer, amid protests from teachers and police officers, and farmer demonstrations in recent weeks. The protests follow huge rallies last year against Macron’s ultimately successful proposal to increase the retirement age from 62 to 64.
Barbara Surk reported from Nice, France. Lorne Cook contributed to this report from Brussels.
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University, Thursday, April 25 in Paris. 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron will outline his vision for Europe as a more assertive global power at the backdrop of war in Ukraine, security, and economic challenges in a speech ahead of pivotal election for the European Parliament in June. (Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University, Thursday, April 25 in Paris. 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron will outline his vision for Europe as a more assertive global power at the backdrop of war in Ukraine, security, and economic challenges in a speech ahead of pivotal election for the European Parliament in June. (Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University, Thursday, April 25 in Paris. 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron will outline his vision for Europe as a more assertive global power at the backdrop of war in Ukraine, security, and economic challenges in a speech ahead of pivotal election for the European Parliament in June. (Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University, Thursday, April 25 in Paris. 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron will outline his vision for Europe as a more assertive global power at the backdrop of war in Ukraine, security, and economic challenges in a speech ahead of pivotal election for the European Parliament in June. (Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University, Thursday, April 25 in Paris. 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron will outline his vision for Europe as a more assertive global power at the backdrop of war in Ukraine, security, and economic challenges in a speech ahead of pivotal election for the European Parliament in June. (Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University, Thursday, April 25 in Paris. 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron will outline his vision for Europe as a more assertive global power at the backdrop of war in Ukraine, security, and economic challenges in a speech ahead of pivotal election for the European Parliament in June. (Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University, Thursday, April 25 in Paris. 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron will outline his vision for Europe as a more assertive global power at the backdrop of war in Ukraine, security, and economic challenges in a speech ahead of pivotal election for the European Parliament in June. (Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University, Thursday, April 25 in Paris. 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron will outline his vision for Europe as a more assertive global power at the backdrop of war in Ukraine, security, and economic challenges in a speech ahead of pivotal election for the European Parliament in June. (Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron arrives to deliver a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University, Thursday, April 25 in Paris. 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron will outline his vision for Europe as a more assertive global power at the backdrop of war in Ukraine, security, and economic challenges in a speech ahead of pivotal election for the European Parliament in June. (Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University, Thursday, April 25 in Paris. 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron will outline his vision for Europe as a more assertive global power at the backdrop of war in Ukraine, security, and economic challenges in a speech ahead of pivotal election for the European Parliament in June. (Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University, Thursday, April 25 in Paris. 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron will outline his vision for Europe as a more assertive global power at the backdrop of war in Ukraine, security, and economic challenges in a speech ahead of pivotal election for the European Parliament in June. (Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during a media conference at an EU summit in Brussels, Thursday, April 18, 2024. European Union leaders on Wednesday debated a new "European Competitiveness Deal" aimed at helping the 27-nation bloc close the gap with Chinese and American rivals amid fears the region's industries will otherwise be left behind for good. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)
