Saint Laurent
Rick Owens
April 25, 2020
Sonia Rykiel
April 25, 2020
Yves Saint Laurent, born in French Algeria in 1936, is regarded as one of the foremost fashion designers of the twentieth century. He is credited with both reinvigoration of couture in the 1960s and as well as the popularization of ready-to-wear. His style was ever-adaptable and he approached fashion from a new perspective, wanting women to be comfortable yet elegant at the same time. He is also credited with having introduced the women’s tuxedo jacket, the fashion peacoat and the shirtdress, and was known for his use of non-European cultural references, and non-white models.
After winning a design competition in Paris in 1953, beating out a young Karl Lagerfeld, Saint Laurent met Christian Dior through a family friend, Michel de Brunhoff, then editor-in-chief of Vogue France. Upon showing his sketches to Dior, he was hired by the couturier immediately. After Dior’s untimely death in 1957, Saint Laurent found himself the design director of the House of Dior at age 21. After a few successful seasons, his tenure at Dior ended when he was conscripted to the French army during the Algerian war in 1960. Upon his return to France, he and his partner, industrialist Pierre Bergé, started their own fashion house Yves Saint Laurent YSL in 1961. His collections famously popularized such trends as the beatnik look, safari jackets, le smoking jacket, and the ever-iconic Mondrian dress.
The YSL brand was purchased by the Gucci group in 1999, which was subsequently purchased by fashion conglomerate Kering in 2004. Saint Laurent stayed at the brand until his retirement in 2002 and passed away in 2008. Creative director Hedi Slimane renamed the brand Saint Laurent in 2012. The creative director post has been held by many prestigious designers, including Alber Elbaz, Tom Ford, Stefano Pilati, Hedi Slimane, and Anthony Vaccarello.
Current Creative Director: Anthony Vaccarello
