1980s Yves Saint Laurent Multico Dress
View Similar Items
1980s Yves Saint Laurent Multico Dress
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Length: 41.74 in (106 cm)Waist: 39.38 in (100 cm)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Please note this skirt is in good condition with minor wear consistent with age and use. Colors are a bit faded, but still gorgeous.
- Seller Location:Paris, FR
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU18721655203
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.
- 1972 Elliette Lewis Purple Cotton Dress Columbo Season 2By ELLIETTE LEWISLocated in Paris, FRFantastic 1972 ELLIETTE LEWIS (Miss Elliette) thin cotton voile purple dress featuring an off white piping, a center back zip with a center back button. worn by Sandra Smith in Colu...Category
1970s American Cocktail Dresses
- Chanel Knitted Knee-Length DressBy ChanelLocated in Paris, FRChanel knitted knee-length dress featuring piped-trim detailing, chest patch pocket with CC embroidered on, three-quarter length sleeves, Composition: Silk 86%, Viscose 76%, Polyami...Category
Early 2000s French Cocktail Dresses
- 1980s Azzedine Alaia Green MinidressBy Azzedine AlaïaLocated in Paris, FR1980s Azzedine Alaia green buttoned-up knitted minidress featuring a fitted silhouette, a short length, front button placket, body yokes. 86%wool, 10% poliamide, 4%elastane In good...Category
1980s French Mini Dresses
- 2008 Chanel Navy Silk DressBy Chanel, Karl LagerfeldLocated in Paris, FRChanel Navy silk dress featuring a detachable front bow, back neck slit, center back zip opening, with sides bra wires, full silk lining. Composition: 100% Silk Lining: 100% Silk C...Category
Early 2000s French Cocktail Dresses
- Chanel Orange Sequin-Detailing Tweed Sleeveless DressBy ChanelLocated in Paris, FRChanel orange sequin-detailing tweed sleeveless dress featuring sequin detailing, concealed rear zip fastening, a round neck, cap sleeves, two front patch pockets and a thigh-length....Category
Early 2000s French Cocktail Dresses
- Pierre Cardin Blue Long DressBy Pierre CardinLocated in Paris, FRNavy Pierre Cardin crepe knitted dress featuring a reverse jersey knitting, blue and turquoise band, an A line, a sleeve famous logo. In good vintage condition. Made in France. Esti...Category
Late 20th Century French Day Dresses
- Jean Paul Gaultier 1997 Fashion & Culture Japanese Tattoo Maxi DressBy Jean Paul GaultierLocated in PARIS, FRJean Paul Gaultier 1997 Fashion & Culture Japanese Tattoo Maxi Dress Jean Paul Gaultier JPG 1997 Fashion & Culture Jean's 90s Vintage Japanese Tattoo...Category
1990s French Maxi Dresses
- 1970's Vintage Tri Color Floral DressBy I Magnin and CoLocated in Georgetown, MEVintage 70's Tri Color Floral Halter Dress! I am obsessed with this dress, it is perfect in every way. Designer: unknown has the Joseph Magnin Department Store Label Size: fi...Category
1970s Maxi Dresses
- Ralph Lauren Collection Purple Label Pink Ascot Dress & Jacket S/S 2008 Sz 4By Ralph Lauren Purple LabelLocated in Saint Petersburg, FLRalph Lauren Purple Label - Flirty pink and black dress with matching jacket. This dress was featured on the Spring/Summer 2008 40th Anniversary ...Category
Early 2000s American Informal Dresses
- Christian Dior/John Galliano - Embroidered Cherry Blossom Dress F/W 2003 Sz 38FRBy John Galliano for Christian Dior, Christian DiorLocated in Saint Petersburg, FLJohn Galliano for Christian Dior Embroidered Cherry Blossom Dress. This dress is formfitting with a geometric hem, mock turtleneck and flowing upp...Category
Early 2000s French Informal Dresses
- Alessandra Rich polkadot short dress with sequins collarBy Alessandra RichLocated in Toronto, CAAlessandra Rich pink silk short dress with white polkadots , puff sleeve with shoulder pad , sequins collar , crystal button detail.Category
2010s Italian Mini Dresses
- Gianfranco Ferre Tunic DressBy Gianfranco FerréLocated in Los Angeles, CAPurple Tunic dress. Double layer on back. Mandarin collar. Front buttons. Side pockets. Shoulder pads. Wool. Lined. Made in France. *Condition: Great vi...Category
1980s Day Dresses
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.