The story continues. Kim Kardashian has been accused of causing additional damage to Marilyn Monroe‘s sparkly Bob Mackie dress.
Collectors reported missing crystals on Monday, June 14 after they received tears and tears from the zipper. Scott FortnerHis Instagram Story posted photos that showed rips on the sleeves of the historic design. This was after Kardashian, 41 years old, wore the number at the 2022 Met Gala. Fortner also uploaded an before photo that showed the same area of dress intact. The fashion archivist also shared an after and before photo of the bottom of his gown on his Instagram Story. The dress looks slightly frayed and missing jewels in the after photo.
Fortner shared in his initial post an image of Fortner’s back, one that was taken on June 12th 2016, and another of the dress displayed in 2016. The look was showing signs of distress and pulling in the second photo. “Was it worth it?” Fortner wrote in the caption of the post, tagging Ripley’s Believe it or not! — the gallery that acquired the gown for $4.8 million in 2016.
The museum loaned Kardashian the dress to wear to fashion’s biggest night on May 2. Ripley’s later released a statement, revealing that no alterations had been made to the dress and that the Skims founder had changed into a replica after wearing the number on the red carpet.
“Great care was taken to preserve this piece of pop culture history,” the center said in a statement on social media: “With input from garment conservationists, appraisers and archivists, the garment’s condition was top priority. Believe It or Not! No alterations were to be made to the dress and Kim even changed into a replica after the red carpet.”
The dress was too beautiful to alter so the beauty mogul had to lose weight. “I would wear a sauna suit twice a day, run on the treadmill, completely cut out all sugar and all carbs, and just eat the cleanest veggies and protein … I didn’t starve myself, but I was so strict,” she told VogueIn a conversation published May 2. In a separate interview with the fashion magazine, Selfish author revealed she had to “lose 16 pounds … to be able to fit” into the design.
Kardashian told the outlet that she was “extremely respectful to the dress” and “would never want to sit in it or eat in it or have any risk of any damage to it.”
The incident still angers many, including Mackie.
“I thought it was a big mistake,” the designer told Entertainment Weekly last month. “[Marilyn]She was a goddess. A crazy goddess, but a goddess. She was simply amazing. Nobody photographs like that. It was done for her. It was made for her. Nobody else should be seen in that dress.”
Kardashian has not yet commented about the alleged damage.
