François Picard is pleased to welcome Dana Thomas, author of Gods and Kings: The Rise and Fall of Alexander McQueen and John Galliano, and the New York Times bestseller Deluxe: How Luxury Lost Its Luster. The fiery controversy over the Met’s now-cancelled John Galliano retrospective challenges the timeless debate over whether art can be separated from the artist. Our guest argues that the key issue is institutional power. From her perspective, Galliano’s stature as an artist and fashion designer is never in dispute. All the while, his character has been once again very publicly called into question.