Karl Lagerfeld has a new career: sculptor

By

Godfrey Deeny

Published
Oct 10, 2018

Add sculptor to the list of professions that Karl Lagerfeld has conquered; along with designer, photographer, illustrator, costume designer, architect, writer and all-round master of the bon mot.

The most famous designer in France will stage his debut fine art exhibition next week, with a display of sculptures in the Carpenters Workshop Gallery in the Marais district of Paris. 

Entitled  Architectures, it is a collection of functional sculptures designed by Karl Lagerfeld and inspired by Antiquity. Notably a black marble altar-shaped table with modernist Doric columns and a  concrete base. An ensemble of guéridons, tables, lamps, consoles, fountains and mirrors are combined to make a contemporary statement, based on the rigors of classical proportions.

The key materials are marble; either Arabescato Fantastico, a vibrant white marble with dark grey veins which has not been quarried for more than thirty years, or Nero Marquina, a black marble with milky white veins. Each work is only available in limited editions of eight pieces in each marble color, plus four artist proofs; all cut, faceted and polished in Italy by local craftsmen.
 
Karl linked up with architect Aline Asmar d’Amman who carried out the studies for the ideas he developed. Asmar d’Amman has just been tapped to design the interiors of the iconic Jules Verne restaurant in the Eiffel Tower for Michelin star chef Frédéric Anton.
 
The exhibition dovetails with the concept of Carpenters Workshop Gallery, which intermingles elements of art, design and fashion in its shows. Founded in Chelsea in 2006, the Carpenters Workshop Gallery now boasts four galleries, including Paris, New York and San Francisco.
 
Karl Lagerfeld Architectures will run from October 19 to December 22 in Carpenters Workshop Gallery located at 54 rue de la Verrerie, Paris 75004.