Famed fashion designer Roberto Cavalli, the founder of his eponymous luxury fashion house, died at his home in Florence, Italy on April 12. He was 83.
His company confirmed the news in a statement posted on Instagram: "A life lived with love. It is with great sadness that today we say our final goodbyes to our founder Roberto Cavalli. From humble beginnings in Florence, Roberto succeeded in becoming a globally recognised name loved and respected by all. Naturally talented and creative, Roberto believed that everyone can discover and nurture the artist within themselves. Roberto Cavalli's legacy will live on via his creativity, his love of nature and via his family who he cherished."
Cavalli's maximalist approach to fashion became widely recognized in the 1970s for its sexy cuts and bold animal prints. In the 1990s, he revolutionized denim jeans by adding Lycra for built-in stretch, and for strategically sandblasting jeans to give them the now ubiquitous distressed look.
"Fashion is part of our life. When you wake up in the morning you say, "What do I have to wear to look beautiful, fantastic, sexy, special?"' Cavalli told CNN in 2008. "That is the reason I love being a fashion designer because I can use it to measure your mood, your life."
"Cavalli lived in a technicolor world in which there was neither room for neither gray, nor subtlety," Vogue eulogized. "His life is for the living, and his pleasure-for-the-taking attitude was infectious, just as his bright, bold, body-confident approach to dressing remains relevant today."
Cavalli's style lent itself perfectly to staging and tour costumes, and he was a favorite of artists like Madonna, Beyonce, Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson, Aaliyah, Christina Aguilera, Jennifer Lopez, Shakira, and Taylor Swift. In fact, one of the best current places to see Cavalli's designs is on Swift's Eras Tour. She wears Cavalli during her Fearless, Evermore, Reputation, and 1989 sets.
Madonna wore a teal three-piece Cavalli suit this week while supporting her son Rocco Ritchie at his art exhibition in Miami, but the Material Girl has also worn Cavalli on tour -- specifically during her 2008 Sticky and Sweet Tour. In conjunction with that era, Cavalli designed the uniforms for her Hard Candy fitness club in Berlin.
In 2010, Cavalli outfitted Shakira for the 2010 FIFA World Cup kick-off in South Africa, where she performed her worldwide hit "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)."
Megan Thee Stallion wore custom Cavalli to the 2022 Grammys:
Two decades before Megan's animal print red carpet turn, Aaliyah rocked her own high-slit, black and yellow, zebra-print Cavalli number at the 2000 MTV Music Awards. Aaliyah wore a number of Cavalli designs in her videos and out on the town.
Cavalli was also a favorite of Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler. He and guitarist Joe Perry were special guests at Cavalli's Milan Fashion Week show in June 2014. Tyler showed up in head-to-toe snake print.
More recently, Miley Cyrus wore a glitzy Cavalli in her latest music video, "Doctor (Work It Out)" with Pharrell Williams. The designer said this was a black silk bustier mini dress, with all-over embroidered silver sequins and fringed hems.
Beyonce wore a cowboy-inspired Cavalli costume during an Atlanta stop on her Renaissance Tour, but we've yet to see if any Cavalli designs will be included in a future Cowboy Carter tour.
Katy Perry tapped Cavalli to outfit her 2014 Prismatic tour.
And at Coachella 2022, Anitta wore a classically Cavalli catsuit. It was bright, multi-colored, and sexy with animal print and cut-outs all over. It was the kind of unmistakeable design that Cavalli's name will always be attached to.
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