PARIS — Israeli fashion dressmaker Alber Elbaz, satisfactory recognized for spending 14 years on the helm of France’s Lanvin fashion residence, has died at 59, the luxurious conglomerate Richemont stated Sunday.
A spokesperson for Richemont informed CNN and The New York Times that Elbaz died Saturday from COVID-19.
Elbaz, who began drawing dresses aged seven, worked at Guy Laroche and Yves Saint Laurent before joining Lanvin as creative director in 2001. Under his leadership, Elbaz transformed not only the label but also fashion’s relationship with Hollywood.
The red carpet has gone from elitist to popular,” he said at the time. “Everyone has access to it, even if only on the internet or through magazines. In a statement, Richemont’s chairman Johann Rupert stated, “ it became with surprise and massive disappointment that I heard of Alber’s unexpected passing. Alber had a genuinely earned recognition as one of the industry’s brightest and most beloved figures.
“I changed into constantly taken through his intelligence, sensitivity, generosity, and unbridled creativity. He became a person of fantastic warmth and talent, and his singular imaginative and prescient, the experience of splendor and empathy depart an indelible impression,” Rupert stated.
Elbaz commenced working in collaboration with Richemont in 2019 to launch his label, fashion.
Born in Morocco in 1961, Elbaz grew up in Israel earlier than shifting to New York in the 1980s.
He first became recognized to the general public while he became named to guide the French residence Guy Laroche in Paris in 1996. In 1998, he became an innovative director at Yves Saint Laurent. He changed into credited with reviving Lanvin at some point of his lengthy stint from 2001 to 2015.
The Richemont organization paid tribute to Elbaz’s “inclusive imaginative and prescient of style” that “made girls feel stunning and snug by mixing traditional craftsmanship with technology.