Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche Skirt Suit, circa 1990
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: Équivalent French size 36 (EU)
- Style:1990 (Of the Period)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Very good Condition and color.
- Seller Location:Toulon, FR
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU63334084701
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: Toulon, France
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 2 days of delivery.
- A Rare Ottoman Banyan in Embroidered Silk - Early 19th centuryLocated in Toulon, FRLate 18th or early 19th century Ottoman Empire Astonishing and very early banyan, kaftan or ottoman coat dating from the late eighteenth century. Raw silk background with woven check...Category
Early 1800s Turkish Caftans
- A Carven French Couture Evening Coat in Silk Satin and Feathers Circa 2003By CarvenLocated in Toulon, FR2003/2004 Collection France Evening parka coat in pink silk satin and Marabout feathers from Carven Haute Couture designer house, Collection Winter 2003/2004 - passage n ° 17 - From Princess Diane...Category
Early 2000s French Cocoon Coats
- A French Brocaded Satin Silk Evening Jacket Circa 1930/1950Located in Toulon, FRCirca 1930/1950 France Amazing evening or party jacket inspired by Amazone style, in brown silk satin with gold stylized patterns in volutes, feathers and panaches. This is a reuse of an older dress...Category
1940s French Blouses
- Ted Lapidus Raw Striped Silk Jacket, Circa 1975By Ted LapidusLocated in Toulon, FRCirca 1975 France Ted Lapidus jacket in raw silk striped in shades of turquoise, orange, cream and brown. Slim fit with wide collar, three real front pockets, pleated in the back wi...Category
1970s French Bush Jackets
- Dignitary coat or Choga in Safran Pashmina - India Punjab 19th centuryLocated in Toulon, FRSecond half of the 19th century India Punjab Male coat of an Indian dignitary called Choga from the Punjab region (Amristar) end of the 19th century. Very fine Curry yellow pashmina densely embroidered with red silk threads and silver thread. Kimono cut with wide three quarter sleeves. Fully lined with straw yellow cotton chintz...Category
Mid-19th Century Indian Coats
- A Satin Striped Kaftan - Ottoman Empire Circa 1900 - 1920Located in Toulon, FRCirca 1900 - 1920 Ottoman Empire Turkey A beautiful striped silk and cotton satin Kaftan or house coat called a Bayadere dating from the early ...Category
Early 20th Century Turkish Caftans
- Vintage Escada by Margaretha Ley 1990s Saddle Brown Suede Leather Jacket DressBy Escada, Escada Margaretha LeyLocated in San Diego, CAClassic vintage 90s ESCADA by MARGARETHA LEY saddle brown color suede leather jacket dress! The perfect color that matches everything. Super soft luxurious suede is fully lined. Gold...Category
1990s German Casual Dresses
- Helmut Lang Vintage Khaki Crop JacketBy Helmut LangLocated in Beverly Hills, CAVintage Helmut Lang Khaki Crop Jacket Size 2/ Small **** small stains ( see image) *** This Garment has been professionally Dry Cleaned and Ready to wear.Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Cropped Jackets
- Gianni Versace cheetah print faux fur jacket and dress ensemble, c. 1990sBy Gianni VersaceLocated in London, GBA Gianni Versace jacket and dress ensemble from the 1990s made for the 'Versus' line. The swing jacket is double breasted and fastens with th...Category
1990s Italian Day Dresses
- Valentino 1980's Leather Dress/JacketBy ValentinoLocated in Scottsdale, AZGet your hands on this vintage 1980's Valentino gem. This has a beautifully soft camel colored leather with a knit arms and collar. It has a full zip on the center that could be worn open as a jacket or zipped as a dress. It has a beautiful belt...Category
1980s Italian Jackets
- CHRISTOPHER KANE Jacket And Dress SetBy Christopher KaneLocated in Paris, FRIt is a set of long jacket and Christopher Kane dress Size 40. The jacket is in transparent pink silk with white embroidery, a brooch in pink rhinestones as well as pieces of glued t...Category
2010s French Jackets
- Amazing 1970s Joseph Magnin Vibrant Colorful Abstract Mosaic Vest 70s Maxi DressBy Joseph Magnin Co.Located in San Diego, CAAmazing 1970s vintage JOSEPH MAGNIN vibrant colorful abstract mosaic sleeveless vest / maxi dress! Features bright hot pink fuchsia, blue, purple...Category
1970s American Vests
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.