Yves Saint Laurent Vintage YSL Chiffon Dress
View Similar Items
Yves Saint Laurent Vintage YSL Chiffon Dress
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: 38 (EU)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Carmel, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU417205054
Yves Saint Laurent
French fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent pioneered “cross-design” in fashion, taking inspiration from street trends to modernize haute couture.
Saint Laurent was the first to launch a ready-to-wear label, YSL Rive Gauche Prêt-à-Porter. He was the first couturier to open boutiques for both men and women. Using traditional menswear fabrics and designs for women, Saint Laurent also literally cross-dressed, giving men and women alike chic pant suits, elegant tuxedo jackets and urban safari gear. By blurring gender-specific design, he empowered individual style while creating a scissor-sharp fashion aesthetic of sensual ease and beauty. Many of his designs are today considered timeless classics. Saint Laurent also consistently used Black models, like Mounia, Iman and Naomi Campbell, and he drew endless inspiration from different ethnicities and cultures, in no small part because of his Algerian roots.
Born to French parents in Oran, Algeria, in 1936, Saint Laurent went to Paris at age 17 to study fashion at the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture. Just two years later, in 1955, his remarkable sketches were shown to Christian Dior, then the world’s reigning couturier, who hired him immediately.
Surprisingly soon thereafter, Dior publicly chose Saint Laurent as his successor, which sadly proved prescient when the fashion legend died unexpectedly, in 1957. A mere slip of a youth, the 21-year-old Saint Laurent was nevertheless up to the challenge. He shook the traditional couture clientele to its core with youthful silhouettes and styles like the A-line trapeze dress that hung with seeming effortlessness from the shoulders, the antithesis of the pinched waists and molded skirts that had been all the rage after the deprivations of World War II.
After a mandated spell in the torturous French military, Saint Laurent suffered a nervous breakdown and was dismissed by Dior in 1962. Out of the ashes rose the Age of Yves. With Pierre Bergé, his then-lover who became his lifelong business partner and friend, the designer founded Yves Saint Laurent YSL to encompass prêt-à-porter, or ready-to-wear. In 1966, they opened the first YSL Rive Gauche women’s boutique in Paris, followed soon thereafter by YSL Rive Gauche for men. Saint Laurent had given birth to a global brand.
His revolutionary Mondrian mini dress from 1965 is a core element of his fashion biography. It is a prime example of how Saint Laurent, an avid art lover and collector, looked to painters, from Goya to Picasso, Ingres to Matisse, for inspiration.
With its pure lines and hues, Mondrian’s ground-breaking 1935 color-block painting Composition C transmutes beautifully into a dress that is highly valued by collectors of contemporary fashion and widely copied commercially to this day. The design is the epitome of Saint Laurent’s aesthetic, requiring a meticulous hand piecing of each color block so that, despite the body’s curves, the visual plane is as flat as a canvas when the garment is worn. Mondrian’s purity met its match in Saint Laurent.
“I am no longer concerned with sensation and innovation, but with the perfection of my style,” Saint Laurent said four years before retiring, in 2002. After a long period of ill health, he died at his home in Paris on June 1, 2008.
Browse an extraordinary collection of vintage Yves Saint Laurent evening dresses, shirts, handbags and other clothing and accessories today on 1stDibs.
- Giorgio Sant Angelo 1970s Layered Lace DressBy Giorgio di Sant' AngeloLocated in Carmel, CAVery lightweight vintage Giorgio Sant Angelo dress features a square neckline trimmed with black velvet ribbon. Bodice of dress has both black velvet and rust satin ribbon. Lined in ...Category
1970s American Cocktail Dresses
- Pauline Trigere Cut Velvet Silk Chiffon DressBy Pauline TrigèreLocated in Carmel, CAPauline Trigere 2 piece dress is made with a silk chiffon and has pink cut velvet flowers throughout. Slip dress (bottom layer) has spaghetti straps that are adjustable, a side zippe...Category
1970s American Aesthetic Evening Dresses
- Pierre Cardin 1970's Wool Pleated Flare Mini DressBy Pierre CardinLocated in Carmel, CAPierre Cardin mini dress features a back zipper closure, pleated cuffs and hem, satin band around the hips, and is fully lined. Measurements: Bust - 35'' Waist - 33'' Hips - 4...Category
1970s Mini Dress
- Vintage Halston Navy Blue Chiffon Slip DressBy HalstonLocated in Carmel, CAHalston chiffon dress features a long-sleeve layer that has an elasticized waist and a hook & eye closure. Slip has a V-neckline and tan/neutral-...Category
1970s Evening Dresses and Gowns
$1,750 Sale Price20% Off - Bill Blass Hot Pink Silk GownBy Bill BlassLocated in Carmel, CABill Blass Hot Pink Silk taffeta strapless gown with attached shawl. Vintage from the 1980s. Features back zipper, pleated waist, full skirt and structured strapless bodice with a wr...Category
1980s American Evening Dresses and Gowns
- PatBo Crochet Fringe V Neck Mini Dress Sz 6Located in Carmel, CAPatBo indigo blue crochet bodycon fringe mini dress. Features v neck, rear concealed zipper, light stretch to fabric. As seen on Jessica Williams on Shrinking. Designer size 6. Made ...Category
2010s Brazilian Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Adolfo Tropical Silk Jersey Strapless Dress with Half CapeletBy AdolfoLocated in New York, NYAdolfo strapless dress with bold green, indigo and white tropical floral print. Wonderfully tailored, with fitted bodice and draped open tulip front slit above the knee for movement...Category
Late 20th Century American Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Leonard of Paris Pastel Silk Chiffon Day / Evening DressBy Leonard of ParisLocated in New York, NYPretty pastel silk chiffon Leonard of Paris special occasion day / evening dress. Bodice has a ruffled capelet that flows from the center of the dress...Category
Late 20th Century French Day Dresses
- Jean Muir Emerald Green Viscose Jersey Cocktail DressBy Jean MuirLocated in New York, NYJean Muir emerald green jersey cocktail dress with long wrap sash. Sash may also be worn as long scarf around neck, and tied at lower back. Front of dress has asymmetrical pleating. ...Category
Late 20th Century British Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Leonard of Paris Fuschia Multi Color Silk Chiffon Strapless GownBy Leonard of ParisLocated in New York, NYVintage Leonard of Paris bright and flirty ruffled silk chiffon cocktail dress / evening gown, unmarked size, approximately US 6. Featuring four layer...Category
Late 20th Century French Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Valentino Boutique Black Beaded Silk Chiffon Evening Gown Size US 6By ValentinoLocated in New York, NYLuxurious Valentino Boutique black silk evening gown with tiered ruffles, sweeping hemline and hand beaded and embroidered bodice. Two ruffles at bodice are hand beaded with tiny jet...Category
Late 20th Century Italian Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Badgley Mischka Beaded Black Silk Lace Evening Gown Size US 10By Badgley MischkaLocated in New York, NYBadgley Mischka glamorous black silk lace evening gown, size US 10. Gown features hand beaded and embroidered lace with glass jet beading, and neckline with glass jet beads along cu...Category
Late 20th Century American Evening Gowns
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
How to Spot a Fake YSL Bag
Counterfeiters know that savvy fashionistas cherish YSL bags. Learn how to tell if yours is the real deal. Of course, you don't have to worry about that on 1stDibs, where every seller is highly vetted.
Quiet Luxury May Be Trending, but These Famous Interiors Prove That Quality and Quirk Endure
Because truly timeless design requires personal vision, transcendent taste, real fortitude and top-notch objects, even if the wider world hasn’t caught on yet.