1980s Yves Saint Laurent Black Asymetric Dress With Flaminco Style Trim
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Length: 55.5 in (140.97 cm)Marked Size: 4-6 (US)Bust: 34 in (86.36 cm)Waist: 27 in (68.58 cm)Hip: 36 in (91.44 cm)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:London, GB
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU5507991822
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: London, United Kingdom
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 7 days of delivery.
- 1970s Navy Jersey Haute Couture Grecian Style DressLocated in London, GBThis mid to late 1970s navy and sequin detail Grecian dress is a show stopping unlabelled couture piece. It is skilled work and has mostly been mad...Category
1970s French Evening Dresses
- 2000s Herve Leger Black Bandage DressBy Herve Leger by Max AzriaLocated in London, GBThis classic black bandage dress by Herve Leger was purchased in early 2010 and was part of the permanent collection of signature pieces which has defined the brand since the 1980s, ...Category
Early 2000s American Evening Dresses
- 1980s Black Silk Jersey Batwing Dress with Leather AppliqueLocated in London, GBStatement 1980s silk jersey trapeze dress, complete with dramatic leather appliqué detail to each shoulder. It has a high, gently rounded neckline and fastens loosely at the rear with two diamanté style buttons with a keyhole opening. The fabric is an incredibly soft, lightweight black silk jersey, which feels luxurious and comfortable against the skin. The dress has wide batwing sleeves, each finished at the cuff with the same diamanté button detail. The shoulders feature a unique appliqué detail made of silver and black leather rosettes...Category
1980s British Evening Dresses
- 1970s Janice Wainwright Jersey and Burnout Velvet DressBy Janice WainwrightLocated in London, GB1970s Janice Wainwright black evening dress that is unashamedly a tribute to the original party dresses of the 1920s. Wainwright's early work is highly sort after by collectors and museums alike. She founded her own company in 1970 after working for Simon Massey...Category
1970s British Evening Dresses
- 1950s Blanes Black Taffeta Rose Applique DressLocated in London, GBThis 1950s black taffeta ball dress by quality British brand Blanes, is perfect for a black or white tie event. It has ribbon work appliqué around the folded square neckline and bott...Category
1950s British Ball Gowns
- 1990s Moschino Cheap & Chic Black Beaded Textured Slip DressBy Moschino Cheap and Chic, MoschinoLocated in London, GBTextured black wool A-line Moschino shift dress. The front features a gentle round neckline whilst the fabric is made up of a fine black mesh with knitted floral overlay, complete w...Category
1990s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- 1980s Dimitri Kritsas long black dressLocated in Milano, IT1980s Dimitri Kritsas long black dress with wide shawl neckline and low cut back. Rounded high slit in front with fitted long sleeves. Evening dress Size: M Waist: 88 cm Length: 14...Category
1980s American Evening Dresses
- Yves Saint Laurent by Tom Ford FW-02 Silk Flared Hem Dress - Velvet RibbonBy Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche, Tom Ford for Yves Saint LaurentLocated in Brussels, BEFlirtation and eroticism were on American designer Tom Ford’s mind for his Fall/Winter 2002 Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche collection. Using stereotypical women’s fabrics for appropr...Category
Early 2000s French Sheath Dresses
- Moschino Silk Contoured Hoop-Skirt GownBy MoschinoLocated in Scottsdale, AZThis gown will pull you in and intrigue you with all the curves and volume. This Moschino design is genius as the skirt has varying sizes of circular boning to fit to your own body's curves giving you a hyper-feminized silhouette. Featuring a full-length to add to the drama and a simple black color-way and tank-top style to let the bottom detail steal the show. The fabric is 100% silk. Make sure to pair this dress with dramatic earrings...Category
1990s Italian Aesthetic Evening Dresses
- Gianni Versace black evening dress with leather strap ss 2001By Donatella Versace for Gianni VersaceLocated in London, GBOne-shoulder black dress with leather strap and gathers at strap on front and back. Spring-summer 2001Category
Early 2000s Italian Evening Dresses
- Vivienne Westwood black velvet glitter figure hugging maxi dress, fw 1991By Vivienne WestwoodLocated in London, GBVivienne Westwood black velvet glitter figure hugging maxi dress Always on Camera, Fall-Winter 1991Category
1990s British Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Azzedine Alaia black acetate knit figure hugging evening dress, A/W 1986By Azzedine AlaïaLocated in London, GB- Metal zip closure at the back - Figure hugging fit - Turtle neck Autumn-Winter 1986Category
1980s Italian Evening Dresses and Gowns
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.