Russian fashion designer Viacheslav "Slava" Zaitsev has died at the age of 85.

A spokeswoman for Zaitsev's fashion house told the Agence France-Presse (AFP) news agency that the designer had celebrated his birthday in March with friends.

"We could already see he was very, very weak," she said.

An obituary published by the TASS news agency said that he died after a long illness. According to Russian media, Zaitsev was taken to a hospital in the Moscow region with stomach bleeding and died in intensive care.

Who was Slava Zaitsev?

Russian state channel Perviy Kanal praised Zaitsev as a man who "dictated Soviet and Russian fashion for decades," calling him an "innovator who wasn't afraid of bold experiments.

"It's a great loss for the world of international fashion," Russian stylist Sergei Zverev was quoted as saying by Russian news agency Ria Novosti.

Zaitsev was known for designing bright dresses featuring flower patterns taken from traditional Russian shawls.

He grew up in the town of Ivanovo, around 300 kilometers (185 miles) northeast of Moscow.

In the 1960s, French media called him the "Soviet Christian Dior."

Zaitsev was watched closely by the KGB because of his contacts with Western designers. He was initially refused permission to leave the Soviet Union.

In the 1980s and early 1990s, the wife of Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, Raisa, wore Zaitsev's collections. In 2003, Russian President Vladimir Putin's then wife, Lyudmila, also wore one of the designer's dresses during a state visit to the United Kingdom.

sdi/sri (AP, AFP)