The Code of Yves Saint Laurent
Monsieur Saint-Laurent was not just a fashion designer. He was a creator of up-to-the-minute RTW, one of the first to present black models on his runways. He made androgyny into a cool fashion statement and was heir to the Christian Dior throne. With his death on June 1, 2008, fashion loses not only a vibrant part of its History but also one of fashion’s most prominent pioneers.
“Like Chanel I have always accepted copies and I am extremely proud that women, the world over today wear pants-suits, smoking suits, pea jackets, and trench coats. In many ways I feel that I have created the wardrobe of the contemporary women and that I have participated in the transformation of my era.” Yves Saint Laurent Press conference January 7th, 2002
Yves Saint-Laurent opened his fashion house in 1961 with partner Pierre Berge as his financial backer. Only months before Berge had rescued him from the psychiatric ward of a Parisian hospital. It was also Berge who took steps to sue Dior when the legendary French fashion house would not hire Saint-Laurent back, a move that allowed the designer to launch his own house.
His is a style that can’t be pinned to any particular decade but was always spearheading some form of revolution. Fashion historians even say that Yves Saint-Laurent is probably the greatest designer of the 20th century.
Born in the “beatnik chic” era with knitted turtlenecks, thigh high boots and short jackets, “le style Saint-Laurent” – as it became known – provided classic silhouettes that would not have existed without him:the A-line dress; the pantsuit; the belted safari jacket; the woman’s tuxedo, better known as “Le Smoking”; the peasant look, as well as Andy Warhol “Pop Art” inspired dresses.
Looking back on his 46-year career, Yves Saint-Laurent was always at the forefront of fashion innovation. He made the power suit sexy, beatnik and hippies, trendy and trust fund babies, bohemians. In fashion and in life, Saint-Laurent embraced difference, both shock and gain traction in the fashion world.
Monsieur Saint-Laurent jolted the world awake, with clothes that were perfectly cut, wearable, and absolutely fabulous. His greatest hits in his early collections were those for which he took great risks by their extreme, maverick quality.
At a time where Haute Couture was still the be-all and end-all of fashion, Saint-Laurent took another risk by launching his ready-to-wear line called Rive Gauche.
He aimed to bring the look and detailing of Couture to the streets, where he felt that there was no less love for fashion than among the wealthy elite. At the time, giving up Haute Couture for Ready-to-Wear was, well, unfashionable, to say the least. However, with his underlying desire to clothe the world in YSL, he paved the way for fashion’s ever-growing presence in life.
It was a time for revolutionary changes and his designs reflected this. Season after season, he amazed the fashion world with looks, but also attitudes that had been unheard of until then. He was among the first mainstream designers to showcase black women on his catwalk, opening careers for the likes of Katoucha. By the end of the 60s, Saint-Laurent had made fashion history as one of the key players of the era.
Yet underneath all the glittering successes hid the scars of psychiatric problems that plagued the designer since his youth days in Algeria, culminating during his military service in the Franco-Algerian conflict. Throughout his life, the designer battled drugs and alcohol addictions.
Today, such problems are almost mainstays for creative minds but in his days, they were often career-destroying.
There is a timeless element to Yves Saint-Laurent, one that will not fade in years to come. From Catherine Deneuve to Chloe Sevigny, his looks have adorned stars of their times, seducing by their “now” quality but also walking red carpets towards “classic”. They’ve become such a large part of fashion’s collective memory that his influence can be felt in the works of today’s star designers.
He will greatly missed and leaves behind a rich legacy which will be difficult to rival but will be a font of inspirational material for tomorrow’s designers to reinterpret and use as stepping stones for the future. Such was Yves Saint-Laurent’s talent and such is the code of YSL.
Charlotte Marie Smith for StyleCartel
Special thanks to Fondation Pierre Bergé – Yves Saint Laurent
5, avenue Marceau
75116 Paris
+33 1 44 31 64 00
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