Fashion designer Alber Elbaz dies of Covid-19 age 59

Celebrated fashion designer Alber Elbaz, perhaps best known for his work at Yves Saint Laurent and Lanvin, has died of Covid-19 at the age of 59, luxury fashion company Richemont said Sunday.

Elbaz was the creative director of Paris-based Richemont’s AZ Factory, for which he designed “beautiful, practical, and solutions-driven fashion that works for everyone,” according to its website.

He died Saturday of Covid-19, a spokesperson for Richemont told CNN.

“It was with shock and enormous sadness that I heard of Alber’s sudden passing. Alber had a richly deserved reputation as one of the industry’s brightest and most beloved figures,” Richemont chairman Johann Rupert said in a statement.

“I was always taken by his intelligence, sensitivity, generosity and unbridled creativity. He was a man of exceptional warmth and talent, and his singular vision, sense of beauty and empathy leave an indelible impression.”

Born in Casablanca, Morocco, and raised in Israel from the age of one, Elbaz had studied at the Shenkar College of Engineering and Design.

He worked at Yves Saint Laurent before starting a 14-year tenure as creative director at Lanvin, earning critical and commercial success for the house and cementing a worldwide reputation as a beloved designer, the AZ Factory website said.

Italian-French fashion model Carla Bruni-Sarkozy was among those who paid tribute to the late designer on social media, sharing a picture of Elbaz and her with the words: “How sad. Rest in peace.”

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo tweeted that Elbaz, “a talented, generous man, loved Paris so much and will be missed.”

Elbaz’s death leaves the fashion industry in mourning, only a few months after the death of Kenzo Takada, founder of Kenzo, who also died of the coronavirus.