John Galliano bows out of Met exhibition as backlash over antisemitism mounts

John Galliano has withdrawn from a planned Metropolitan Museum of Art exhibition, saying the show should not go ahead "at this time" as criticism of the museum's decision to honor him intensified.

Galliano said he remained accountable for the pain caused by his past remarks, particularly to Jews and Asians. He recognized that an exhibition celebrating his work could itself be painful for some people. The Met said it agreed with his decision.

The museum announced less than a month ago that Galliano would headline its spring 2027 Costume Institute exhibition. The honor would have made him only the third living designer to receive a solo show there. The exhibition was also scheduled to open alongside the Met Gala, one of New York's largest annual cultural and celebrity events.

“

At this time

Opposition grew in recent weeks. Dana Thomas, Galliano's biographer, called the museum's decision a serious error in an August 6 New York Times guest essay. Jewish leaders, museum donors and New York politicians later joined the criticism. New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin described the decision as deeply painful for Jewish New Yorkers, while prominent donor Alice Tisch called the planned exhibition a "whitewash."

The reversal also represents a setback for Anna Wintour, Condé Nast's chief content officer and a major force behind the Met Gala. She had supported Galliano for decades and was among the Met figures most closely linked to bringing the exhibition to the museum.

The controversy included a more complicated assessment of Galliano's efforts at repentance. Rabbis Rick Jacobs and Joshua Davidson met with him before the exhibition was announced and said they believed his remorse was sincere. Jacobs said Galliano had shown the contrition needed to return to fashion, while Davidson said Galliano's statements and efforts to learn about Judaism and the Holocaust had convinced him. Neither rabbi endorsed the Met's decision, but both said the museum would have to present Galliano's antisemitic conduct and the lessons of his repentance explicitly if it proceeded.

“

whitewash