1970's YVES SAINT LAURENT red floral silk halter neck dress with flounce
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: FR 38 (EU)Waist: 27 in (68.58 cm)Hip: 37 in (93.98 cm)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Altered (not by designer). Light signs of wear. Elastic was added to waistband and is currently at 29". It can be easily taken in if needed or cinched with the belt. Light marks near hemline. Teeny pulled thread near label (hidden when worn).
- Seller Location:San Fransisco, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU8122332872
Yves Saint Laurent
French 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, Saint Laurent 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.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Oakland, CA
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- 1970's BIBA peach floral jacquard dressBy BibaLocated in San Fransisco, CAVery rare, floral jacquard dress designed by Barbara Hulanicki for Biba dating to the 1970's. Dress has a loose fit due to very clever seaming. Fits a size 2 to 6. Approximate measur...Category
1970s British Day Dresses
- 1990's AZZEDINE ALAIA black crocheted dressBy Azzedine AlaïaLocated in San Fransisco, CAClassic, jet-black, knit wool dress with crocheted detail from Alaia dating to the 1990's. Size 'S'. Approximate measurements: bust 32", waist 22", hips 32' and length is 33" - howev...Category
1990s French Evening Dresses and Gowns
- 1970's SCOTT BARRIE black jersey dressBy Scott BarrieLocated in San Fransisco, CAJet-black, jersey dress designed by Scott Barrie dating to the 1970's. Dress fits a size 4. Dress measures approximately 32" at bust, 13" at smallest point of shoulders and 15.5" alo...Category
1970s American Day Dresses
- Azzedine Alaia zig zag cranberry chenille knit dressBy Azzedine AlaïaLocated in San Fransisco, CACranberry, chenille knit dress with woven zig- zag pattern from Azzedine Alaia. Labeled a French size 38 which would best fit a US 4 or 6. Zips up center back. Made in Italy. New wit...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Day Dresses
- Sorelle Fontana charcoal grey wool dress with gold brocade detail, 1960sBy Sorelle FontanaLocated in San Fransisco, CAVery rare charcoal wool dress with gold brocade insert and decorative beaded buttons designed by the Fontana sisters 'Sorelle Fontana' dating to the ea...Category
1960s Italian Day Dresses
- COMME DES GARCONS navy blue sheer dress with rufflesBy Comme des GarçonsLocated in San Fransisco, CANavy blue, asymmetrically cut dress with ruffles from Comme Des Garcons dating to 2008. Size S. Approximate measurements: bust 38", hip 42" and length 40". Sli...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Day Dresses
- A French Gold Printed and painted Satin Dress Circa 1940-1950Located in Toulon, FRCirca 1940-1950 Europe Amazing little summer dress with flowers on a gold background dating very propably from the Second World War. Clever print on silk satin cream with surreal patterns popular in the 1940s thanks to Elsa Schiaparelli ... Fish, horse heads, parrots appear in a flowery decor and abundant acid colors. Short sleeves and Claudine collar applied with a golden cord and knotted. Integrated belt with two flaps hanging out on the front to refine the silhouette. Beautiful bobbin lace...Category
1940s French Cocktail Dresses
- Runway Yves Saint Laurent S/S 1989 Lipstick Red Rayon Jersey Strapless 80s DressBy Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche, Yves Saint LaurentLocated in San Diego, CASensational vintage YSL Rive Gauche spring / summer 1989 runway lipstick red rayon jersey strapless 1980s dress ! The same dress was featured on the runway in black. Sash at side wai...Category
1980s French Cocktail Dresses
- F/W 2001 Gucci by Tom Ford Black Tulle Sleeveless Shift DressBy Tom Ford for Gucci, GucciLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a black pleated chiffon Gucci dress, designed by Tom Ford. From the Fall/Winter 2001 collection, the top version of this dress in pink debuted on the season's runway as pa...Category
Early 2000s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- Andrea Wilkin 1970s Silk Ivory Fantasy Bridal Dress in Edwardian StyleBy Andrea WilkinLocated in London, GBThis exquisite Andrea Wilkin 1970s fantasy bridal gown in soft ivory exudes femininity and is in wonderful condition. Layers of silk fabric are beautifully arranged to create the cla...Category
1970s British Wedding Dresses
- Claude Montana Black Wrap Dress/Optional Coat With Velvet AccentsBy Claude Montana, Claude Montana ParisLocated in New York, NYClaude Montana black wrap dress with an optional choice to wear as a coat iss accented with velvet as ties and finished with gold hardware caps on ...Category
1980s Italian Day Dresses
- Halston 1970s Wrap Beaded GownBy HalstonLocated in Water Mill, NYAn amazingly detailed elegant red silk beaded wrap dress from Halston. The floor length gown is covered in red glass tubular beads in an intricate abstract shapes pattern with red ne...Category
1970s American Evening Dresses and 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.