1976 Yves St Laurent "peasant collection", black gauze & lace top & skirt
View Similar Items
1976 Yves St Laurent "peasant collection", black gauze & lace top & skirt
About the Item
- Designer:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: 40 France (EU)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:West Palm Beach, FL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU284230080
Yves Saint Laurent
French designer Yves Saint Laurent pioneered “cross-design” in fashion, taking inspiration from street trends to modernize haute couture.
Saint Laurent was the first to launch a ready-to-wear label, YSL Rive Gauche Prêt-à-Porter. He was the first couturier to open boutiques for both men and women. Using traditional menswear fabrics and designs for women, Saint Laurent also literally cross-dressed, giving men and women alike chic pant suits, elegant tuxedo jackets and urban safari gear.
By blurring gender-specific design, Saint Laurent empowered individual style while creating a scissor-sharp fashion aesthetic of sensual ease and beauty. Many of his designs are today considered timeless classics. Saint Laurent also consistently used Black models, like Mounia, Iman and Naomi Campbell, and he drew endless inspiration from different ethnicities and cultures, in no small part because of his Algerian roots.
Born to French parents in Oran, Algeria, in 1936, Saint Laurent went to Paris at age 17 to study fashion at the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture. Just two years later, in 1955, his remarkable sketches were shown to Christian Dior, then the world’s reigning couturier, who hired him immediately.
Surprisingly soon thereafter, Dior publicly chose Saint Laurent as his successor, which sadly proved prescient when the fashion legend died unexpectedly, in 1957. A mere slip of a youth, the 21-year-old Saint Laurent was nevertheless up to the challenge. He shook the traditional couture clientele to its core with youthful silhouettes and styles like the A-line trapeze dress that hung with seeming effortlessness from the shoulders, the antithesis of the pinched waists and molded skirts that had been all the rage after the deprivations of World War II.
After a mandated spell in the torturous French military, Saint Laurent suffered a nervous breakdown and was dismissed by Dior in 1962. Out of the ashes rose the Age of Yves. With Pierre Bergé, his then-lover who became his lifelong business partner and friend, the designer founded Yves Saint Laurent YSL to encompass prêt-à-porter, or ready-to-wear. In 1966, they opened the first YSL Rive Gauche women’s boutique in Paris, followed soon thereafter by YSL Rive Gauche for men. Saint Laurent had given birth to a global brand.
His revolutionary Mondrian mini dress from 1965 is a core element of his fashion biography. It is a prime example of how Saint Laurent, an avid art lover and collector, looked to painters, from Goya to Picasso, Ingres to Matisse, for inspiration.
With its pure lines and hues, Mondrian’s ground-breaking 1935 color-block painting Composition C transmutes beautifully into a dress that is highly valued by collectors of contemporary fashion and widely copied commercially to this day. The design is the epitome of Saint Laurent’s aesthetic, requiring a meticulous hand-piecing of each color block so that, despite the body’s curves, the visual plane is as flat as a canvas when the garment is worn. Mondrian’s purity met its match in Saint Laurent.
“I am no longer concerned with sensation and innovation, but with the perfection of my style,” Saint Laurent said four years before retiring, in 2002. After a long period of ill health, he died at his home in Paris on June 1, 2008.
Browse an extraordinary collection of vintage Yves Saint Laurent evening dresses, shirts, handbags and other clothing and accessories today on 1stDibs.
- Coco Chanel Red Haute Couture 1950s 2 pc Wool Jersey Jewel Button Dress & CoatBy ChanelLocated in West Palm Beach, FLChanel Red Haute Couture two piece wool knit jersey dress & coat with Gripoix gold & turquoise glass buttons, designed by Coco Chanel from the 1950s. Before Chanel, jersey was a lowl...Category
1950s French Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Ronald Amey Rare Evening Coat & Evening Dress in Devore Velvet & Satin 1970sBy Ronald AmeyLocated in West Palm Beach, FLRonald Amey rare evening coat & matching evening dress in devore velvet & silk satin from the 1970s. This set is very unusual, rarely, do you find an evening coat & matching dress to...Category
1970s American Dress and Coat Ensembles
- Jeanne Lanvin Numbered Couture Early 1960s Blue Tweed Skirt SuitBy Lanvin Paris, Jeanne LanvinLocated in West Palm Beach, FLJeanne Lanvin numbered couture, early 1960s designed by Jules-Francois Crahay. Aqua blue nubby wool tweed skirt suit, speckled wool in aqua blue, loden...Category
1960s French Skirt Suits
- Pauline Trigere Black Guipure Lace over Gold Lame 1980s 2pc Skirt SetBy Pauline TrigèreLocated in West Palm Beach, FLPauline Trigere black Guipure lace over gold lame', 2pc skirt set from the 1980s. The top has a jewel neckline and is seamed at the waist, flaring at the hem. The sleeves have padded...Category
1980s American Cocktail Dresses
- Geoffrey Beene Floral Cloque Silk & Sheer Silk Top & Yoke Hip Maxi Skirt 1970sBy Geoffrey BeeneLocated in West Palm Beach, FLGeoffrey Beene floral cloque silk with off white sheer upper bodice, front & back from the 1970s. Lightweight silk with a texture, in a beautiful floral print The top has raglan slee...Category
1970s American Maxi Dresses
$1,356 Sale Price20% Off - Thierry Mugler Black Cord Lace Hourglass Jacket & Skirt Set 1980s 40By Thierry MuglerLocated in West Palm Beach, FLThierry Mugler Black cord lace jacket & matching skirt from the 1980s, looks barely, if ever, worn. Fitted jacket features black cord open work lace at the collar & lapels plus the s...Category
1980s French Skirt Suits
- Oscar de la Renta Ivory & Navy Silk Chiffon Beaded Blouse & Tank Set - MBy Oscar De La RentaLocated in West Palm Beach, FLOscar de la Renta Ivory & Navy Silk Chiffon Beaded Blouse & Tank Set - M. This set is in excellent vintage condition with the only issue being some discoloration by the arm pit area ...Category
1990s French Twin Sets
- Oscar de la Renta Black Velvet Skirt Suit with White Embroidery - 10 - 1990sBy Oscar De La RentaLocated in West Palm Beach, FLOscar de la Renta Black Velvet Skirt Suit with White Embroidery - 10 - 1990s. This skirt suit is in excellent vintage condition with light wear to the velvet and embroidery. The jack...Category
1990s American Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Emanuel Ungaro Parallele 1990’s Navy Boucle Jacket with skirt - Size 12By Emanuel UngaroLocated in West Palm Beach, FLThis vintage 1990’s Navy Boucle Jacket has white stitching throughout making a large checkered pattern. The jacket also has 3 yellow grosgrain ribbon making horizontal rows along the...Category
1970s Italian Skirt Suits
- Gianni Versace F/W 1998 grey pinstripe linen suit with logo mini beltBy Gianni VersaceLocated in Rome, IT- Versace by Donatella Versace - Sold by Gold Palms Vintage - Dark grey striped linen suit - Large lapel padded jacket - Front logo button - Relaxed suit trousers - Additional mini...Category
1990s Trouser Pant Suits
- Sonia Rykiel 1980's Yellow Crepe SuitBy Sonia RykielLocated in New York, NYSonia Rykiel 1980's Yellow Crepe Suit. Its yellow crepe fabric exudes a bold and cheerful charm, making it a standout ensemble that captures the esse...Category
1980s Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Ralph Lauren Sport Fringe Leather Top & Pant SetBy Ralph LaurenLocated in Los Angeles, CAUnleash your inner adventurer with the Ralph Lauren Sport Fringe Leather & Pant Set. Made from suede leather and featuring a bold fringe detail, this set is perfect for the risk-take...Category
1990s Trouser Pant Suits
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
How to Spot a Fake YSL Bag
Counterfeiters know that savvy fashionistas cherish YSL bags. Learn how to tell if yours is the real deal. Of course, you don't have to worry about that on 1stDibs, where every seller is highly vetted.
Quiet Luxury May Be Trending, but These Famous Interiors Prove That Quality and Quirk Endure
Because truly timeless design requires personal vision, transcendent taste, real fortitude and top-notch objects, even if the wider world hasn’t caught on yet.