1990s Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche Navy Halterneck Sleeveless Mini Dress
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: 34FR (EU)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Light wear throughout.
- Seller Location:West Hollywood, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2388219739082
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.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: West Hollywood, CA
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 1 day of delivery.
- S/S 1997 Gucci by Tom Ford GG Buckle Black Stretch Backless Halter Top DressBy Tom Ford for Gucci, GucciLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a sexy formfitting halter neck Gucci dress, designed by Tom Ford for the Spring/Summer 1997 collection. This dress features a halter neck with a gold 'GG' interlocking clo...Category
1990s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- S/S 1998 Gucci by Tom Ford G Buckle Purple Knit Sleeveless Cutout DressBy Tom Ford for Gucci, GucciLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting two-in-one, this dress can be worn with either an exposed back or a plunging neckline. Sexy and versatile, this dress represents one of Tom Ford's most popular and iconic ...Category
1990s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- S/S 1998 Gucci by Tom Ford Leather Strap Black Knit Runway DressBy Tom Ford for Gucci, GucciLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a form-fitting knit Gucci dress, designed by Tom Ford. This dress debuted on the Spring/Summer 1998 runway as look 5. Constructed of black knit viscose, this long sleeve d...Category
1990s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- S/S 2002 Gucci by Tom Ford Knit Hook Closure Runway Black Knit Dress SetBy Tom Ford for Gucci, GucciLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a slinky hook and eye closure accented sweater dress set designed by Tom Ford for Gucci's Spring/Summer 2002 collection. This set debuted as look number 23 on Erin Wasson on the Spring/Summer 2002 runway and was seen on Debra Messing at the 2002 Screen Actor's Guild Awards and in the March 2002 issue of L'Uomo Vogue...Category
Early 2000s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- Mid-Late 1990s Gianni Versace Couture Black Dropped Hem Bias-Cut Wiggle Gown LBDBy Gianni Versace, Gianni Versace CoutureLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a vintage midi Gianni Versace dress, designed by Gianni Versace. This is the little black dress your wardrobe is missing. Simple and classy, th...Category
1990s Italian Day Dresses
- F/W 1991 Gianni Versace Couture Runway Black Stretch Bouclé Wool Mini Dress LBDBy Gianni Versace, Gianni Versace CoutureLocated in West Hollywood, CAPresenting a runway-ready little black dress designed by Gianni Versace for his iconic Fall/Winter 1991 collection. This piece debuted as runway look number 27 on Marpessa Hennink an...Category
1990s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- AZZEDINE ALAÏA black dress and green polka dots FR 36By Azzedine AlaïaLocated in Rubiera, REAZZEDINE ALAÏA PARIS black dress with green polka dots - sleeveless very snug zip on the back size FR 36 Made in Italy 50% wool 25% viscose 15% polyamide 10% polyester Flat measures:...Category
2010s Italian Mini Dresses
- VERSACE velvet barocco dress and biker jacket pre fall 2011By VersaceLocated in Rubiera, REVersace pre fall 2011 Collection Coordinated biker jacket and dress, velvet barocco Size IT 42 Excellent conditionCategory
2010s Italian Jackets
- VERSACE coat and dress black and white F/W 2011By VersaceLocated in Rubiera, REVERSACE FALL 2011 COLLECTION Black and white coordinated coat and dress Size IT 40 Made in Italy 1st fabric (black): 100% wool 2nd fabric (white): 68% polyester 22% polyurethane and...Category
2010s Italian Coats
- Miu Miu 1996 white dressBy Miu MiuLocated in CAPELLE AAN DEN IJSSEL, ZH90's Miu Miu white button down dress. Very similar to look 36 of the 1996 runway collection. Which shows an open jacket. But this seems to be from a previous collection that Drew Bar...Category
1990s Day Dresses
- Jean Paul Gaultier Postcard Post Letter Stamp Mesh JPG Tattoo Maxi Dress 1998By Jean Paul GaultierLocated in PARIS, FRJean Paul Gaultier Jean's Yellow Postcard Post Letter Mesh JPG T-shirt Tattoo Vintage Calligraphy Stamp Dress 1998. Wonderful vintage dress from Jean Paul Gaultier! Postcard print with stamps and callygraphic wiriting on it, a Gaultier staple, from the 1998 collection! Blue greys on a light YELLOW background. NOTE: The background is light YELLOW (it was difficult to take photos about the shade). Very fine knit, typical JPG, form hugging and very flattering. EXCELLENT condition! Size: XS-L (Marked 38). Extremely stetchy fabric. Model’s size in the photos: XS. Bust: 32 cm Waist: 29 cm Lenth: 128 ABOUT JEAN PAUL GAULTIER Catapulting to fame in the 1990 s with a naughty, sexy, anti establishment attitude to fashion and a strong punk esthetic, Gaultier excels at bright, tongue in cheek prints and sculptural couture pieces. Reknown for elevating classic French sailor stripes to couture level and of course Madonna's cone shaped corsets on her Blonde Ambition tour in 1990, Gaultier remains very successful today, recently designing several Met Gala dresses.Category
1990s French Maxi Dresses
- 1990's Moschino Cheap & Chic "Not Just A Pretty Dress" Velvet Studded DressBy Moschino Cheap and ChicLocated in Concord, NCMoschino Cheap and Chic 1990's black velvet form fitting dress with a whimsical quote studded on the front stating "Not Just A Pretty Dre...Category
1990s Italian Day Dresses
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.