Tom Ford For Yves Saint Laurent Velvet Shoes
View Similar Items
Tom Ford For Yves Saint Laurent Velvet Shoes
About the Item
- Designer:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU449421412
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.
- Rare Alexander McQueen Runway 2008 Shoes New 39By Alexander McQueenLocated in New York, NYAlexander McQueen runway 2008 lace up shoes New with minor flaws Size 39 FINAL SALECategory
21st Century and Contemporary Shoes
- Christopher Kane Runway Lace / Leather DressBy Christopher KaneLocated in New York, NYBlack leather and lace dress with embroidered floral detail. Christopher Kane dress is sleeveless, has a leather collar, a concealed zip fasteni...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Day Dresses
- Missoni Skirt New Size 42By MissoniLocated in New York, NYNew Missoni skirt.Without tags. Size 42.Made in Italy. Black slip included. Skirt approx. measure 14.5 Waist, 36" Length, Hips 22". Made in Italy. Fabric 100% viscosa /rayon....Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Skirts
- Rare Issey Miyake Dress Photography By Irving PenBy Issey MiyakeLocated in New York, NYIssey Miyake dress from 1990's Same dress in off white version was photographed by Irving Pen Excellent condition. Made in Japan.FINAL SALECategory
1990s Evening Dresses and Gowns
- John Galliano Skirt Suit SZ 6USBy John GallianoLocated in New York, NYJohn Galliano suit Size 6US Excellent condition Skirt: Waist 29" Length 28" hem is uneven cut Hips 38" Jacket Underarm 38" Waist 31" Sleeve 27.5" FINAL SALECategory
21st Century and Contemporary Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- CHANEL Black Stretch Top With Pink CC Long Sleeve SZ 42 NEWBy ChanelLocated in New York, NY100% AUTHENTIC GUARANTEED CHANEL Black Stretch Top With Pink CC Long Sleeve Bottom of the sleeve have hole for your thumb, very cool Zipper closure o...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Shirts
- Chanel Black and White Patent Leather Cage Peep Toe Booties Shoes Size 41 or 11By ChanelLocated in Tustin, CAHard to find size 11 or 41, Chanel Black and White Patent Leather Cage Peep Toe Booties Shoes from the Spring 2015 runway collection of the legendary luxury brand Chanel. These edgy...Category
2010s Italian Shoes
- Atelier Versace Black Satin Sling Backs, Never Worn Size 7By Atelier VersaceLocated in Buchanan, MIAtelier Versace Black Satin Sling Backs, Never Worn Size 7Category
20th Century Italian High Heels
- Atelier Versace Black Satin Sling Backs, Never Worn Size 7By Atelier VersaceLocated in Buchanan, MIAtelier Versace Black Satin Sling Backs, Never Worn Size 7Category
20th Century Italian High Heels
- Atelier Versace Black Satin High Heels, Never Worn Size 7By Atelier VersaceLocated in Buchanan, MIAtelier Versace Black Satin High Heels, Never Worn Size 7Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian High Heels
- Louis Vuitton Suede Perforated ShoesBy Louis VuittonLocated in Fort Lauderdale, FLPurposely created to exude style and provide comfort wherever you go, this pair of loafers by Louis Vuitton is absolutely worth the buy! They have been finely crafted from perforated...Category
Early 2000s French Shoes
- SAINT LAURENT Farrah Star Platform SandalsBy Saint LaurentLocated in Berlin, BEThe most incredible 1970s inspired platform sandals by Saint Laurent with star embellishment. The model is Farrah. These rare platform sandals are the perfect statement shoe! These...Category
2010s French Sandals
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.