Yves Saint Laurent (designer)
| Yves Saint Laurent | |
|---|---|
Saint Laurent (left) with Gilles Bernard at the Proscénium Gallery
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| Born |
Yves Henri Donat Mathieu-Saint-Laurent 1 August 1936 Oran, French Algeria |
| Died | 1 June 2008 (aged 71) Paris, France |
| Cause of death | Brain cancer |
| Nationality | French |
| Occupation | Fashion designer |
| Partner(s) | Pierre Bergé |
| Labels | Yves Saint Laurent |
Yves Henri Donat Mathieu-Saint-Laurent (French pronunciation: [iv sɛ̃ lɔʁɑ̃]; 1 August 1936 – 1 June 2008), known as Yves Saint Laurent, was a French fashion designer, and is regarded as one of the greatest names in fashion history. In 1985, Caroline Rennolds Milbank wrote, "The most consistently celebrated and influential designer of the past twenty-five years, Yves Saint Laurent can be credited with both spurring the couture's rise from its sixties ashes and with finally rendering ready-to-wear reputable."He was able to adapt his style to accommodate the changes in fashion during that period. He approached fashion in a different perspective by wanting women to look comfortable yet elegant at the same time. He is also credited with having introduced the tuxedo suit for women and was known for his use of non-European cultural references, and non-white models.
Yves Henri Donat Mathieu-Saint-Laurent was born on 1 August 1936, in Oran, Algeria, to Charles and Lucienne Andrée Mathieu-Saint-Laurent. He grew up in a villa by the Mediterranean with his two younger sisters, Michèle and Brigitte. Yves liked to create intricate paper dolls, and by his early teen years he was designing dresses for his mother and sisters. At the age of 17, Saint Laurent moved to Paris and enrolled at the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, where his designs quickly gained notice. Michel De Brunhoff, the editor of French Vogue, introduced Saint Laurent to designer Christian Dior, a giant in the fashion world. "Dior fascinated me," Saint Laurent later recalled. "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 by his side." Under Dior's tutelage, Saint Laurent's style continued to mature and gain even more notice.
In 1953, Saint Laurent submitted three sketches to a contest for young fashion designers organised by the International Wool Secretariat. Saint Laurent won first place. Subsequently, he was invited to attend the awards ceremony held in Paris in December of that same year. During his stay in Paris, Saint Laurent met Michel de Brunhoff (who was then editor-in-chief of the French edition of Vogue magazine). De Brunhoff, known by some as a considerate person who encouraged new talent, was impressed by the sketches Saint Laurent brought with him and suggested he become a fashion designer. Saint Laurent would eventually consider a course of study at the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, the council which regulates the haute couture industry and provides training to its employees. Saint Laurent followed his advice and, leaving Oran for Paris after graduation, began his studies there and eventually graduated as a star pupil. Later that same year, he entered the International Wool Secretariat competition again and won, beating out his friend Fernando Sánchez and young German student Karl Lagerfeld. Shortly after his win, he brought a number of sketches to de Brunhoff who recognized close similarities to sketches he had been shown that morning by Christian Dior. Knowing that Dior had created the sketches that morning and that the young man could not have seen them, de Brunhoff sent him to Dior, who hired him on the spot.
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