NEW YORK – Facing an intense backlash, influential fashion designer John Galliano has taken the unprecedented step of withdrawing from a planned exhibition in his honour at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.

“After much reflection and discussion with all those involved, I have decided, with great sadness, that it is best for the exhibition not to take place at this time,” Galliano wrote in a statement posted to his Instagram page.

He also expressed “profound and enduring” gratitude to the museum’s leadership, and acknowledged the pain his past words had caused.

“I do not want the debate surrounding me to place the Met in a difficult position or distract from the remarkable work of the Costume Institute,” he wrote. “I also recognise and respect that an exhibition honouring my work would be painful for some.”

In a statement on Aug 31, Max Hollein, the director of the Met, said: “Following thoughtful discussions with John Galliano, we have together decided not to proceed with the exhibition.”

The cancellation came at a time when a number of donors and political leaders were coming forward to express their opposition to the nine-month exhibition, which had been scheduled to begin with the 2027 Met Gala.

In recent days, a furor mounted over the museum’s choice to honour Galliano, who was convicted of an anti-Semitic hate crime by a French court in 2011.

He would have been only the third living designer to receive a solo exhibition at the Costume Institute, the Met’s fashion wing.

Given that the Met Gala has traditionally served as the opening night for the Costume Institute’s spring exhibition, the plan risked placing the museum in the position of seeming to sanctify Galliano during an event that has become