S/S 1990 Vintage Yves Saint Laurent Magenta Pink Wool Shift Dress
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: See Description (NA)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Portland, OR
- Reference Number:
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: Beaverton, OR
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 1 day of delivery.
- Vintage Diane Freis Beaded Multi Print Colorful Bold 2 Pc Chiffon DressBy Diane FreisLocated in Portland, ORThis is a fun vintage Diane Freis 2 piece dress in a bold multi patterned print. The easy to wear top has pleated sleeves with elastic cuffs and a fitted waist. with a wide attached ...Category
1980s Hong Kong Day Dresses
- Geoffrey Beene 1960s Bright Vintage Salmon Pink Vintage DressBy Geoffrey BeeneLocated in Portland, ORGeoffrey Beene is one of our favorite US designers and we always grab his vintage pieces whenever we are lucky enough to find them! This beautiful bright salmon pink dress has prince...Category
1960s American Day Dresses
- Vintage Pink Floral Silk Mid Century Dress in Faux Pinafore StyleLocated in Portland, ORThis pretty vintage pink floral silk dress has no label but is exquisitely designed and very well made. The bodice has a faux pinafore look with pr...Category
Mid-20th Century American Cocktail Dresses
- Issey Miyake Vintage Pleats Please Raspberry Pink Pleated Long DressBy Pleats Please, Issey MiyakeLocated in Portland, ORThis bold raspberry red Issey Miyake Pleats Please Dress has hundreds of horizontal plisse pleats (8 per inch) that span the length of...Category
Early 2000s Japanese Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Vintage Couture Dress with Orange & White Silk Bow Print and Ruffled Hem Size 2Located in Portland, ORThis couture vintage dress is in ivory silk with a fabulous orange bow print and it comes with its original fabric belt. There are moon glow type buttons up front and a side metal zi...Category
1980s Unknown Day Dresses
- 1970s Coral Orange Tiered Ruffled Jersey Maxi Dress W Shawl & BeltLocated in Portland, ORThis is a really fun vintage 1970's coral orange stretch knit jersey maxi dress with t5 tiers of ruffles that start at the waist and continue to the bottom of the dress . This v-neck...Category
1970s American Maxi Dresses
- Lanvin Pink Silk Shirt Dress - 36By Lanvin ParisLocated in West Palm Beach, FLThis fun Lanvin silk shirt dress is hot pink. It features a collar, a front pocket, long sleeves, and snap decorations on the shoulders. This dress is in good condition with some sta...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Day Dresses
- A Christian Dior/Gianfranco Ferré Couture Pink Chiffon Dress Circa 1990By Christian Dior, Gianfranco Ferré for Christian DiorLocated in Toulon, FRCirca 1989 - 1990 France Cocktail dress in raspberry pink silk muslin from Dior-Gianfranco Ferré. Bodice inspired by 1940's Fashion, fully corseted and lined with matching chiffon ...Category
1990s French Day Dresses
- GUCCI by TOM FORD Runway S/S 2001 Vintage Lava Print Pink Dress Top Cardigan SetBy Gucci, Tom Ford for GucciLocated in PARIS, FRGucci set by Tom Ford! From the S/S 2001 collecton! SET! Dress + cardigan! The dress is reversible. Pink or black side :) Gucci signature on the fabric. EXCELLENT condition! SIZE ...Category
Early 2000s Italian Evening Dresses
- Chic 1960s Bubblegum Pink Jackie O Style Vintage 60s Raw Silk Bow DressLocated in San Diego, CAChic 1960s bubblegum pink Jackie O style silk dress! Flattering sheath shape with a bow at top left center neck. Full metal zipper up the back with hook...Category
1960s Cocktail Dresses
- New w/ Tags 1970s Lucie Ann of Beverly Hills Hot Pink Cerise Vintage 70s CaftanBy Lucie AnnLocated in San Diego, CAGorgeous deadstock ( new with original store tags ) LUCIE ANN of BEVERLY HILLS hot pink / fuchsia / raspberry / cerise caftan maxi dress ! Super soft jersey material feels wonderful ...Category
1970s American Caftans
- Herve Leger Bodycon Dress 1990sBy Herve LégerLocated in Water Mill, NYA beautiful bight pink fitted dress from master designer Herve Leger in his signature stretch fabric. The dress has spaghetti straps and the body conscious fit he is famous for. It ...Category
1990s French 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.