Yves Saint Laurent Important Evening Ensemble
View Similar Items
Yves Saint Laurent Important Evening Ensemble
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: S (US)
- Place of Origin:France
- Period:
- Condition:Excellent Vintage Condition.
- Seller Location:Los Angeles, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU452309313
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.
- Vintage Versace Powder Blue Cardigan with Matching CamisoleBy Gianni VersaceLocated in Los Angeles, CAVintage Gianni Versace powder blue knit cardigan with a fox fur collar that features beaded accents, and a matching knit camisole with ribbed bustline a...Category
Late 20th Century Italian Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Yves Saint Laurent YSL Black & White Check Wool Skirt SuitBy Yves Saint LaurentLocated in Los Angeles, CAResurrection Vintage is excited to offer a vintage black, grey, and off-white Yves Saint Laurent wool check skirt suit featuring a hip-length jacket with patch pockets, one-button cl...Category
1980s French Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Chantal Thomass White Cotton Jumpsuit With Pink Floral EmbroideryBy Chantal ThomassLocated in Los Angeles, CAResurrection Vintage is excited to offer a vintage Chantal Thomass white cotton jumpsuit with pink floral embroidery, front patch pocket, easy body, and gathered pant hem. Chantal ...Category
Late 20th Century French Jumpsuits
- Jean Paul Gaultier Brown Check High Waisted Suspender ShortsBy Jean Paul GaultierLocated in Los Angeles, CAResurrection is excited to offer a vintage Jean Paul Gaultier black and white check ultra-high waisted knee-length shorts with attached black suspenders and black lace at the hem. J...Category
1990s Italian Jumpsuits
- Maison Martin Margiela Nude Burnt Edged Top and Skirt Ensemble 2003By Maison Martin MargielaLocated in Los Angeles, CAVintage Martin Margiela nude color spaghetti strap camisole and matching knee-length skirt both featuring singed edges along the hems. Circa th...Category
Early 2000s French Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Vintage Yves Saint Laurent Autumn Tone Paisley Ruffle & Taffeta Trim EnsembleBy Yves Saint LaurentLocated in Los Angeles, CAResurrection Vintage is excited to offer a vintage autumn paisley wool skirt and blouse ensemble featuring a blouse with taffeta trim at the collar, cuf...Category
20th Century French Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Resort 2013 Look # 4 NEW VERSACE ICONIC PRINT PANT SUIT 38 - 2By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE Actual PR-sample Resort 2013 Look # 4 Iconic Printed Suit Sleeveless jacket and Pants Gold-tone Medusa hardware Content: 97% Cotton, 3% Elastine Lining:100% visc...Category
2010s Italian Trouser Pant Suits
$1,937 Sale Price50% Off - Resort 2012 L#6 NEW VERSACE FLORAL BLACK and WHITE SILK COTTON PANTS SUIT 38 - 2By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE Actual PR-sample Resort 2012 Look # 6 Black and White Floral print pants suit Gold-tone hardware Asymmetrical details Content: Shirt: 100% cotton Pants:100 % s...Category
2010s Italian Trouser Pant Suits
$1,511 Sale Price35% Off - Missoni Dress and Cardigan Soft Pastel Colours Versatile 4 to 6By MissoniLocated in Miami, FLGuaranteed authentic Missoni terrific dress with matching cardigan. Wearable design in pastel soft colours makes this dress timeless. Classic Missoni knit in beautiful hues of b...Category
2010s Italian Dress and Coat Ensembles
- 1970'S Blue & White Men's Disco Nautical Americana Ensemble With Shoes Sz 12, XLLocated in New York, NY1970'S Blue & White Men's Disco Nautical Americana Ensemble With Shoes Sz 12, XLCategory
1970s Dress and Coat Ensembles
- Fendi 3 Piece Pant Set Lace and Wool 6 NewBy FendiLocated in Miami, FLGuaranteed authentic Fendi stunning black lace button down top features slit sleeves. Fabric wraps and twists at the wrist to create a soft puff. Black spaghetti strap camisole goes ...Category
2010s Italian Trouser Pant Suits
- Vintage Anthony Charles for Koupy Dress and JacketBy Anthony CharlesLocated in London, GBA chic outfit for Fall, by Anthony Charles for Koupy. The jacket has a four button front opening and there are 2 breast pockets and 2 buttons on each c...Category
1960s British 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.