"Dressing is a way of life"
– Yves Saint Laurent
The sea of happy boys
"The recurring theme of my collections is the sea. It is very touching." These words spoken by Yves Saint Laurent are one of the first scenes of the 2002 biographical film titled "Yves Saint Laurent - Le temps retrouvé" directed by David Teboul. Smoking a cigarette, Saint Laurent talks about his childhood home located by the Mediterranean Sea with nostalgia and great longing. His absent gaze and trembling voice, calmly and solemnly pronouncing each syllable describing this blissful and carefree period of his life, give the impression that he would do anything to become the sensitive and poor boy adored by his father for a moment again. Childhood was the happiest period of his life, extremely authentic.
Yves Saint Laurent was born in 1936 in Oran on the coast of Algeria and although the love of the women surrounding him from a multi-generational family made him feel like a happy child, his teenage years turned out to be a real nightmare. Young Yves found out his true sexual orientation very early. Sent to a private Catholic school at the suggestion of his wealthy father, he was surrounded by young macho men who didn't understand his delicate and artistic nature and gentle demeanor. Saint Laurent became the object of ridicule and school mockery. However, this young artist was able to turn his difference into an uncommon strength and determination in the realization of his wildest dreams.
"Cher Monsieur Brunhoff ..." - Yves Saint Laurent's first collection
At only 16 years old, Saint Laurent decided to write a letter to the editor-in-chief of French Vogue, Michela de Brunhoff, asking for career advice. The 17-year-old Yves shocked the editorial office with his self-made collection - the source of astonishment was that the creations made by Saint Laurent could not be differentiated from the designs of the great Christian Dior of the time.
Brunhoff could not be indifferent in the face of such talent, so he created an absolute precedent, going to master Dior in person and convincing him that Saint Laurent's genius needed to be properly shaped and developed.
So, in 1955, under Dior's supervision, the great career of a boy from North Africa from a Catholic school began. Nobody could yet predict how quickly the budding assistant would become the head of the Dior fashion house.
Destined for fashion
Christian Dior recognized that the appearance of young talent in his studio was real destiny. The master did not spoil the young man, although this did not prevent Yves from gaining knowledge of life, fashion, and art from the experienced Dior.
It might seem that Christian Dior foresaw his imminent departure and was raising his successor. After Dior's death, the workers of the fashion house, plunged into despair, were left like children in the fog. However, they knew that to maintain Dior's life's work, they had to put everything on one card - on the 21-year-old Yves Saint Laurent.
Saint Laurent for Dior
Under immense pressure, the designer in 1958 presented his first collection "Ligne Trapéze". The press received his debut very well, and the headlines of the first newspaper pages, as if with relief, shouted, "Saint Laurent saved France!".
The presented collection was based on trapezoidal, geometric shapes. Although the designer was still following the brand's trends, innovations introduced by the younger generation were noticeable to the naked eye - massive, layered skirts disappeared from the runways, overdrawn waist cuts were replaced by straight, flowing forms, and dresses and skirts were shortened by several centimeters.
Over the years, keeping up with the spirit of the epoch, Saint Laurent proposed the introduction of bohemian elements, inspired by the artistic district of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, to the classic Dior couture style. The Beat Look collection was enthusiastically received by the younger generation, but it did not entirely appeal to the older clients of the Dior fashion house.
Separation from Dior and the beginning of YSL
The change in the design direction for Dior was the beginning of the end of Saint Laurent's cooperation with the brand. In 1960, the designer was called up for military service in his native Algeria. Although thanks to medical certificates he managed to avoid the army, his return to Dior was not expected at all.
After returning to Paris, Saint Laurent realized that his job was no longer waiting for him, and the fashion house hired Marcel Bohan in his place. Although for some time they tried to reconcile Yves's revolutionary ideas with Bohan's traditionalism, the end of Saint Laurent's cooperation with the brand did not take place without fireworks.
The young designer, with the support of Pierre Bergé, sued the Dior fashion house for compensation for a broken contract. The money obtained in this way in 1961 gave birth to the YVES SAINT LAURENT brand.
YSL Style
The dominant traits of Saint Laurent's character were peace, shyness, and sensitivity. However, these could not always be found in his designs. Although Saint Laurent himself considered himself one of the last real couture designers, he was not afraid to break stereotypes and propose new solutions in fashion.
In 1966, he presented the world with the model of le smoking - the first tuxedo in a female version. Thanks to him, we could see on the runways, among others: a woman's double-breasted suit, or a transparent organza blouse, as well as a jumpsuit, which has been very popular in recent years.
Yves Saint Laurent designed until 2002 when he presented his last collection for the last time. His life's muse - Catherine Deneuve accompanied him during his last appearance. Three years earlier, Tom Ford was appointed creative director of the brand, who made YSL a market giant. Saint Laurent died in 2008 after an unequal fight with brain cancer.
