The Metropolitan Museum of Art and John Galliano announced August 31 that "John Galliano: Horizons," the Costume Institute's planned Spring 2027 exhibition devoted to the designer's work, will not proceed as planned. The exhibition had been scheduled to open in May 2027, and the Met said information about a new Spring 2027 Costume Institute exhibition and the 2027 Met Gala will be announced at a later date.
The decision was made jointly following discussions between Galliano and the museum. Met Director and CEO Max Hollein said the two sides had "together decided not to proceed with the exhibition," while Galliano said he reached the decision after "much reflection and discussion" with the Met and others involved in the project.
Galliano also addressed the controversy surrounding his past conduct in his statement. He said he remains accountable for the pain caused by his past words, specifically acknowledging the hurt caused to Jewish and Asian communities, and said he remains deeply sorry.
Galliano Addresses the Decision
Galliano said he did not want the debate surrounding him to place the Met in a difficult position or distract from the work of the Costume Institute. He also recognized that an exhibition honoring his work would be painful for some people.
Andrew Bolton, curator in charge of the Costume Institute, said he supports the decision. In the Met's statement, Bolton emphasized the responsibility of museums to examine difficult histories with rigor, candor and care, while also recognizing the pain and concern the proposed exhibition had caused.
Met trustee Anna Wintour also backed the decision. She described Galliano's choice not to proceed with the exhibition at this time as courageous and said she believed it was the right decision.
The announcement came after criticism of the planned retrospective, including concerns about Galliano's history of antisemitic and racist remarks. Reuters reported that the controversy intensified around the timing of the 2027 Met Gala, which is scheduled for May 3, the first Monday of May and the beginning of Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day.
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New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin was among those who publicly opposed the planned exhibition. After the Met announced that it would not proceed, Menin said she was pleased with the decision and described it as personally significant as the daughter of a Holocaust survivor and the first Jewish speaker of the New York City Council.
Jonathan Greenblatt, chief executive of the Anti-Defamation League, also criticized the proposed exhibition. AP reported that Greenblatt had previously acknowledged Galliano's efforts to repair the damage caused by his remarks while expressing concern about honoring him under the circumstances.
What "John Galliano: Horizons" Was Intended to Be
The planned exhibition was conceived as a major examination of Galliano's career. Reporting by Reuters and AP described it as a retrospective that would have made Galliano only the third living designer to receive a solo exhibition at the Costume Institute, following Yves Saint Laurent in 1983 and Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garçons in 2017.
Galliano's career has included leadership roles at major fashion houses, including Christian Dior and Maison Margiela. His career was severely disrupted in 2011 after videos surfaced showing him making antisemitic remarks in a Paris bar; Dior dismissed him, and he was later convicted in France of antisemitic behavior. He returned to fashion in 2014 as artistic director of Maison Margiela and remained there for a decade before leaving the house in 2024, according to Reuters and AP.
For now, the Met has not identified the exhibition that will replace "John Galliano: Horizons," nor has it announced new details for the 2027 Met Gala. The museum said those plans will be disclosed at a later date.
