Scribd
Upload
519 views15 pages

Yves Saint Laurent: Fashion Innovator

Yves Saint Laurent was a highly influential French fashion designer born in 1936. He showed early talent and won fashion competitions that led him to work for Christian Dior in 1955. When Dior died in 1957, the young Saint Laurent was appointed head designer and introduced new, youthful styles. He left Dior in 1960 and founded his own fashion house with Pierre Berge. Saint Laurent revolutionized fashion by drawing inspiration from various styles like peacoats, safari suits, and tuxedos to create iconic designs that are still popular today. He remained an influential figure in the industry until his retirement in 2002.

Uploaded by

Anna Bell
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
519 views15 pages

Yves Saint Laurent: Fashion Innovator

Yves Saint Laurent was a highly influential French fashion designer born in 1936. He showed early talent and won fashion competitions that led him to work for Christian Dior in 1955. When Dior died in 1957, the young Saint Laurent was appointed head designer and introduced new, youthful styles. He left Dior in 1960 and founded his own fashion house with Pierre Berge. Saint Laurent revolutionized fashion by drawing inspiration from various styles like peacoats, safari suits, and tuxedos to create iconic designs that are still popular today. He remained an influential figure in the industry until his retirement in 2002.

Uploaded by

Anna Bell
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
  • Introduction: Visual introduction to Yves Saint Laurent featuring fashion images and his contributions.
  • Historical Context: Discusses historical influences on fashion from the USA and Europe during the mid-20th century.
  • Biography: Chronicles the life of Yves Saint Laurent from birth, early career, to pivotal moments in fashion industry.
  • Career Highlights: Major career achievements of Yves Saint Laurent including his roles at Dior and establishing his own label.
  • His Work and Contribution to Fashion Industry: Details iconic designs and innovations by Yves Saint Laurent, highlighting his influence on modern fashion.
  • Questions: Poses reflective questions about Yves Saint Laurent's influence and source of inspiration.
  • Surprise: Concludes with a surprise link to a related video content, providing an interactive element to the document.

Yves Saint Laurent

By Ana-Ramona
Historical Context
U.S.A
• World War II - trade and communication with Paris
was difficult, French designers' counterparts in
New York stepped up.

• 1957, post-war - U.S. faced a large disposable


income which lead to 1960 consumerist society

• 1960 - John and Jacqueline Kennedy served as a


role model for a youthful American look
• 1960 -Art and youth movements (black models,
African-inflected clothing reflects the civil-rights
movement)

- American society broke up with past’s


restrictions
(fashionable women threw off old norms)

- Feminism was embodied in miniskirts, which


subtracted from the model femininity of the 1950s,
and then with clothing designed for women in
careers
Historical Context
Europe
• Mid 1960’s - Flights between U.S. And Europe lead to a
rapid dissemination of Fashion Trends
- Paris remains the center of Fashion world
- It’s reputation was threatened by rapid growth
and futuristic innovations brought by a group of designers in
London
- Haute couture went into decline, prices
increased and there were less clients
- Fashion houses started to expand Ready-to-
wear, perfumes and make-up industries
Biography
• 1936- Yves Henri Donat Mathieu-Saint-Laurent was born in
Oran, Algeria to a bourgeois family (his father ran a chain of
movie theaters)
- he had two younger sisters (Michele, Brigitte)
• 2002- announced his retirement
• 2008 - dies in Paris, France.

• 1942- attended a catholic primary school

• 1948-49 - his first contact with Fashion world(Vogue, Le


Fardin des Modes magazines- reproduced models of dresses
and invented a fashion house with an imaginary clientele)
• 1953- sent his sketches to Paris and won
a competion for fashion drawings ( jury
members: Christian Dior, Jacques Fath,
Hubert de Givenchy), met editor in chief
of Vogue Paris, Michel de Brunhoff

• 1954- moved to Paris, maintained


correspondence with Brunhoff , entered a
fashion competition, won 1st and 3rd prize
in dress category
• 1955- he was introduced to Christian
Dior , who immediately hired him as an
assistant in his workshop.
Yves Saint Laurent for Christian Dior
• 1957- Dior died of a heart attack in Italy at
age 52

- Yves Saint Laurent was giving the


role of artistic director of the most famous
fashion house in the world
- for 3 years than he was working on
leading the house towards more youthful
styles

• His 1st solo collection for Dior’s House was


the “Trapeze” featuring an undecorated
wedge-shaped silhouette
• 1958 - He experimented with puffball shapes
and was accused of Fancy dress and
lamentations about the loss of Dior’s guiding
hand

• 1960- His final collection for Dior reinterpreted


the clothes of Bikers and Beats in glove leather,
crocodile skins , mink and expensive wools,
usually used for haute couture market.
( Dior’s clients were not ready for such a radical
approach)
- at the age of 24 he left Dior’s house
because he was took to join the army
• 1961- with business partner Pierre Berge, Saint
Laurent founded his own house

• 1962- shows his 1st independent collection

• 1966- he launched his 1st Rive Gauche prêt-a-


porter-boutique, acknowledged the economic
necessity of making less expensive clothes to
attract a wider clientele
His work and contribution to Fashion
Industry
• His work brought classics from work wear and special
occasions wear which then became YSL standards

• He was best designing for elegant young women

• 1962-1968- he revived the pea jacket and the trench coat, Little
Lord Fauntleroy’s knickerbockers suit and the safari suit
• 1965- paintings by Mondrian inspired heavily silk shifts which
are now among the icons of 1960’s

• 1966- he borrowed from men’s formal evening wear to create


his le smoking variations

• 1967- for Spring-Summer Collection - 1st chalk- stripe


pantsuits with vest ( Vestsuits in men’s wear fabrics were the
sensation of the Paris season)
- women tuxedo
- designed for Catherine Deneuve in Luis Brunel’s Belle
de Jour
Questions
• What was that one thing that brought him an immediate
succes?
• Which painter inspired him for the most famous dress of
1960’s ?
• How do you think his life looks like after 1960’s ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgQiq5MUcvw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gC1lO7lqMuw

Yves Saint Laurent By Ana-Ramona
Historical Context U.S.A • World War II - trade and communication with Paris was difficult, French designers' counterparts i
• 1960 -Art and youth movements (black models, African-inflected clothing reflects the civil-rights movement) - American so
• Mid 1960’s - Flights between U.S. And Europe lead to a rapid dissemination of Fashion Trends - Paris remains the center
Biography • 1936- Yves Henri Donat Mathieu-Saint-Laurent was born in Oran, Algeria to a bourgeois family (his father ran a c
• 1953- sent his sketches to Paris and won a competion for fashion drawings ( jury members: Christian Dior, Jacques Fath,
• 1957- Dior died of a heart attack in Italy at age 52 - Yves Saint Laurent was giving the role of artistic director of the
• 1958 - He experimented with puffball shapes and was accused of Fancy dress and lamentations about the loss of Dior’s gu
• 1961- with business partner Pierre Berge, Saint Laurent founded his own house • 1962- shows his 1st independent collectio

You might also like