Yves Saint Laurent YSL Numbered Haute Couture Red Silk Tunic/Skirt Ensemble
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Bust: 40.2 in (102.11 cm)Waist: 33.8 in (85.86 cm)Hip: 43.3 in (109.99 cm)
- Place of Origin:France
- Period:
- Condition:Hardly ever worn.
- Seller Location:Munich, DE
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU78533263053
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.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Munich, Germany
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 3 days of delivery.
- 1977 Roberta di Camerino Black Red Jersey Signature Belt Print Two Piece DressBy Giuliana Coen Camerino, Roberta Di CamerinoLocated in Munich, DEThis jersey blouse and skirt set features a signature trompe l'oeil belt print in red and white on a black background with the iconic "R" printed in between. The blouse has an open c...Category
1970s Italian Day Dresses
- A/W 1990-91 MOSCHINO COUTURE Red Needle Motif Huge Buttons Jacket & Skirt SuitBy Moschino Couture, MoschinoLocated in Munich, DEEarly Moschino pieces designed by Franco Moschino himself – often referred to as Italian fashion's "enfant terrible" – within the short period when he launched the House of Moschino ...Category
1990s Italian Skirt Suits
- 1970s Roberta di Camerino “Gabbiano“ Pink Trompe l'Oeil Print Belted DressBy Giuliana Coen Camerino, Roberta Di CamerinoLocated in Munich, DEThis pink and lobster-red belted polyester knit dress comes directly from the Roberta di Camerino archive in Italy (see archive's stamp on picture 8) and is therefore unworn. Dress...Category
1970s Italian Day Dresses
- Custom-Made Metallic Gold and Black Lurex Velvet Bustier Coat Evening EnsembleLocated in Munich, DESpectacular custom-made bustier top and matching evening coat ensemble in soft gold to black shimmering lurex velvet. The bustier features a strapless design, a sweetheart neckline, ...Category
1990s Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Christian Dior Numbered Haute Couture Navy Wool Skirt Suit, Spring / Summer 1989By Christian DiorLocated in Munich, DEThis Dior skirt suit is constructed in a high quality wool in that perfect navy blue that Christian Dior always fascinated: “Among all colours, navy blue is the only one which can ev...Category
1980s French Skirt Suits
- Emilio Pucci 1971 “Rosa“ Print Black Brown Blue Silk Blouse & Velvet Pants SetBy Emilio PucciLocated in Munich, DEThis stunning 1971 silk chiffon blouse and cotton velvet palazzo trousers hostess ensemble features the “Rosa“ print, one of Emilio Pucci's fabulo...Category
1970s Italian Trouser Pant Suits
- Amazing 1970s Bright Neon Orange Vintage 70s Knit Maxi Dress and Cropped BoleroLocated in San Diego, CAIncredible 1970s bright neon orange knit maxi dress and matching cropped bolero top! Features vibrant flowers in blue, yellow, and green throughout the ruched bodice and jacket. Crop...Category
1970s American Maxi Dresses
- Nina Ricci Red Silk Satin Printed Blouse and Skirt set 1980sBy Nina RicciLocated in West Palm Beach, FLNina Ricci red silk satin printed blouse and skirt set from the 1980s. Gorgeous candy apple red silk satin is printed with tiny abstract black print. The blouse has a pleated high ne...Category
1980s French Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Guy Laroche black and orange dress and Jacket ensemble, circa 1980By Guy LarocheLocated in London, GBA beautiful and delicately constructed ensemble made from bi-color cotton. The dress features a fitted bodice with fine straps and adorned with a bow under the bustline. This black s...Category
1980s French Dress and Coat Ensembles
- Shaheen Tiki Print Red Dress and Bolero Set, 1950sBy Alfred ShaheenLocated in San Francisco, CAShaheen Tiki Print Red Dress & Bolero Set, 1950s. Cotton printed tiki set, convertible dress can turn from a halter neck to strapless. Dress pulls on...Category
1950s Day Dresses
- 1970S HANAE MORI Haute Couture Silk Chiffon Blouse, Scarf & Pants EnsembleBy Hanae MoriLocated in New York, NY1970S HANAE MORI Haute Couture Silk Chiffon Blouse, Scarf & Pants EnsembleCategory
1970s Unknown Day Dresses
- Oscar de la Renta Vintage Red Dress and Jacket / Coat OutfitBy Oscar De La RentaLocated in Portland, ORThis is a 2 piece vintage Oscar de la Renta dress and jacket suit in a rich red wool blend fabric. This beautiful 2 piece ensemble incl...Category
1990s American Dress and Coat Ensembles
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.