Chanel and Fendi Pay Tribute to Karl Lagerfeld With a Joint Memorial Event in Paris

See inside “Karl for Ever.”

Inside Chanel and Fendi’s memorial event for Karl Lagerfeld. Photo: CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT/AFP/Getty Image

On Thursday afternoon, the houses of Chanel and Fendi joined together to put on a memorial event honoring Karl Lagerfeld in Paris. Dubbed “Karl for Ever,” the setting was by Robert Carsen, a theatre and opera director. The Grand Palais — the usual venue for Chanel’s seasonal runway shows — was packed with oversized photos of the late designer lining the walls, a stage set with black, red and white carpeting mirroring that in Lagerfeld’s studio and rows upon rows of black and white chairs. “I wanted something full of life and unexpected,” Carsen told WWD of the scene.

It was attended by many of the biggest names and faces in fashion, from model muses like Claudia Schiffer and Gigi Hadid, to designers like Valentino Garavani and Stella McCartney, to editors like Anna Wintour and Stephen Gan. Many of Lagerfeld’s celebrity friends were also in attendance, like Pharrell and Tilda Swinton, who participated on stage in the event alongside the likes of supermodel Cara Delevingne and French actress Fanny Ardant.

See photos from inside the event in the gallery below, which we will update as more become available.