ROME — Italian fashion designer Roberto Cavalli, known for a flamboyant and glamorous style, has died at age 83, his company said Friday on Instagram.
“Dear Roberto, you may not be physically here with us anymore but I know I will feel your spirit with me always,” Fausto Puglisi, creative director at Roberto Cavalli since October 2020, wrote in the social media post. “Your name will continue on, a beacon of inspiration for others, and especially for me,” Puglisi added.
The fashion house also released a quote by Cavalli that paid tribute to his ultimate muse, according to USA Today: “I copy the dress of an animal because I love to copy God. I think God is the most fantastic designer.”
The Florence-born designer became renowned in the early 1970s for his animal prints and for a sexy, over-the-top style that remained his trademark throughout his long career.
Color, glam and tight fits often ruled his repertoire, which made appearances both at fashion shows and starry events like the Met Gala.
“Every design of mine will be sexy,” he told The Post in 2003, “but not too much. Because the line between sexy and vulgar can be too close sometimes.”
His work found fans in many A-list names from Naomi Campbell to Beyoncé, from Madonna and Cher to the Spice Girls and Zendaya.
In February at Milan Fashion Week, his brand showcased its Puglisi-designed fall/winter 2024-25 collection, which offered an “ode to metamorphosis, with polychrome marbles representing and inspiring a woman’s readiness to transform, evolve and reinterpret herself,” USA Today reported.
The company named after Cavalli shared its condolences with his family. “His legacy remains a constant source of inspiration,” said Sergio Azzolari, CEO at the Roberto Cavalli fashion house.
He is survived by six children, Reuters reported. Previously married twice, he was partnered with Sandra Nilsson since 2014.
This is a developing story. Post staff contributed to this report.
