Stephen Sprouse died of heart failure at the age of 50. Sprouse burst onto the fashion scene in the early eighties with his sixties-inspired graffiti prints and neon miniskirts. In 1983, he opened his business with $1.4 million from his family. Retailers, rock stars, and the press loved his subversive downtown look, and in 1984 he won a CFDA award for "his energy and use of intense color."

But Sprouse always combined his fashion career with his other interests in music and art. "I want to make this work, so I can support my videos and music," he told WWD in February 1984. "I got an electric guitar with my first sequin dress payment." His fashion business came and went over the next decade, but the multitalented designer had numerous other projects, including designing album covers and serving as creative consultant to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, as style.com reports.

But his collaboration with Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton in 2000 really made the fashion crowd take notice. The graffiti logo bags he designed in collaboration with Jacobs were an instant hit. Sprouse's impact at Vuitton was so strong that the company dedicated its runway show on Sunday to him.

In 2002, Target introduced Sprouse-designed wares—everything from swimsuits to skateboards—with an Americana theme, heavy on stars and stripes. Sprouse said at the launch: "I really like high fashion and mass [merchandise] and in a funny way, they're similar. You can have a lot of freedom at the expensive level and also at the teenage level because they look good in everything. It's the middle ground I'm not that interested in."

A memorial service will be held at a later date, according to a spokesperson.