When officiating at Lanvin, it was not uncommon to see Alber Elbaz hidden behind the curtain before the start of the parade, to take the pulse of the hall. The one who was at the head of the Lanvin house for fourteen years died on April 24 as a result of Covid-19, at the age of 59, in a Parisian hospital.
“I have not only lost a colleague, but also a very dear friend”, declared, on Sunday April 25, Johann Rupert, founder and president of Richemont, the group which was developing alongside him his latest project of fashion, AZ Factory, whose launch in January showed the agility intact by Alber Elbaz. That of being able to understand and remain proactive in the face of the current challenges of the fashion industry, in particular by offering clothes at all prices, for all body types, sold exclusively on the Internet.
About this new label, the designer declared: “I have dreamed for years of a fashion that would take care of women, and this dream is even more relevant today, when we cannot be together. The world is changing very quickly, we are all adapting to new behaviors, new emotions. This “factory” works to imagine real solutions for women today. “ And when it came to speaking to women, Alber Elbaz had a knack.
“A perfect mentor”
Born June 12, 1961 in Casablanca (Morocco), Alber Elbaz grew up in Tel Aviv (Israel). His father, a hairdresser, died when he was still a child. Her mother, a painter, works in a restaurant to be able to raise her five children. From his modest childhood, he will keep fond memories when he drew dresses on the family table that he intended for imaginary princesses.
Encouraged by his mother, who detected his talent very early on, he took styling classes at the Shenkar College of Engineering and Design, in Ramat Gan (Israel), and, after his military service, he flew to New York. There, he worked for stylist Geoffrey Beene for seven years, before being called to Paris in 1997 by Ralph Toledano, then president of Guy Laroche, to refresh the brand’s image. A year later, it was Pierre Bergé who invited him to take over, at Yves Saint Laurent, the artistic direction of the Rive gauche ready-to-wear line.
” It’s there that we met. He immediately took me under his wing and we never left each other, explains about him the jewelry designer Elie Top, who will work alongside him for many years and will follow him to Lanvin in 2001. He was the one who encouraged me to develop the jewelry for the house, I didn’t create any before I met Alber. He was a perfect mentor, he knew how to shake me up and push me towards a creative stranger. It prompted me to cross unsuspected borders. Our relationship was nourished by a very strong mutual admiration. He knew how to say thank you to his teams and he was endowed with an electric charisma, which is the trait of very great artistic directors, like Yves Saint Laurent. “
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