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Welcome to Day 22: History of Designers: Yves Saint Laurent
Yves Saint Laurent was the beloved designer who founded the powerful fashion house that stood the test of time. A remarkably talented individual with great ambitions and challenges, his legacy lives on through his iconic, Parisian fashion house which we still admire and honour today. Best known as an influential European fashion designer who impacted fashion in the 1960s to the present day, Yves became subject to immediate fascination, as people were magnetized to the timid, reserved young man, who couldn’t take his eyes off the floor. That’s right, the gentlemen who became a couture connoisseur was once a shy 21 year old about to enter the industry he dreamed of.
Saint Laurent grew up in the Mediterranean with his parents and his two younger sisters. Although his family was substantially wealthy, the future fashion icon did not have an easy childhood. His unpopularity faced him with constant bullying, turning a young, nervous shell of Yves to find comfort and peace in fashion. By his early teen years he had miraculously taught himself to design and create dresses for his mother and sisters. The fashion world was finally opened up to the young dreamer when his mother took him to Paris to meet with the editor of Vogue; Michel de Brunhoff, shortly after impressing him with his own illustrations, young Yves moved to Paris to study at the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture, where more insiders began to notice the young talent emerging. It was within his time at school that Brunhoff introduced Laurent to the prestigious designer Christian Dior, a giant in the fashion world.
Yves Saint Laurent recalled “Dior fascinated me. I couldn’t speak in front of him. He taught me the basis of my art. Whatever was to happen next, I never forgot the years I spent at his side.”
Yves began his career by the side of Christian Dior at his legendary fashion house, the most famous fashion house in the world in their time. It wasn’t long before he stood out and became recognised for his work at Dior, his talents got him a lot of attention. When Dior passed away unexpectedly in 1957, it was clear to the people of Paris that Laurent was the one for the job. After mourning his beloved mentor, Yves’s first collection for the fashion house alone was a success in the admired spirit of Dior’s heritage, it even won him a Neiman Marcus Oscar.
However, the Parisian phenomenon who was publicly applauded as the saviour of French couture was abruptly sacked and called to military service at the age of 24, as things took a dramatic turn, his world fell apart. The intense media exposure and compulsion of war duty lead to Yves having a serious nervous breakdown, admitting him into a hospital. Thankfully he was not alone, his kind-hearted partner; Pierre Berge helped Yves recover, leave the hospital and prepare to come back to work. Only then did the duo founder the fashion house whose three luxurious entwined initials would transform fashion as Parisians knew it in the 60s.
1966 was the year the official YSL house was born, and the timing could not have been better with the rise of pop culture and the hunger for Laurent’s fresh, breath taking designs. His success exploded and didn’t slow down, he even became the first living designer to accept a solo exhibition in the New York Met Museum of Art in 1983. Over the next two decades Saint Laurent dominated the fashion industry, admired by professionals and clients his designs astounded the world. Putting women in blazers, he created many iconic signature pieces such as the jumpsuit; we all still wear today and a sheer blouse. The innovative designer created original, classic garments that became truly timeless.
It was October 1998 that Saint Laurent crafted his final collection and put on his last ready to wear show for the elegant, enduring fashion house he founded over 30 years prior. The renowned designer continued with Haute Couture until 2002, where he took his final, tearful bow. As a founding figure of fashion, his bold fashion approach changed women’s fashion and attitude forever. He peacefully passed away in June 2008 at age 71, with his dearest Pierre , who stayed by him all his life. His courageous attitude to life and bold approach to fashion will forever live on in his legacy of the 3 iconic, momentous initials that make up the distinguished fashion house today.
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