The legendary house of Yves Saint Laurent, founded in 1961 by Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé, revolutionized fashion with its daring and innovative designs. It was Yves Saint Laurent himself who famously declared that while Chanel freed women, he empowered them. With an unapologetic maverick spirit, Saint Laurent’s creations resonated with the 1960s ethos, combining worldly elegance with youthful allure. The iconic Mondrian shift, Le Smoking tuxedo suit, safari jacket, and transparent dress became cultural touchstones, embodying confidence, sensuality, and a subversive edge.
Throughout its history, the brand has remained at the forefront of fashion evolution. From its inception, Yves Saint Laurent pushed boundaries and merged cultural influences, elevating humble and ceremonial garments to haute couture status. The Rive Gauche prêt-à-porter boutique, established in 1966, marked a monumental shift by bringing couture to a wider audience. The brand’s audacity extended to provocative advertising campaigns, notably the controversial nude advertisement featuring Yves Saint Laurent himself.
After the brand’s acquisition by the Gucci Group in 1999, Tom Ford led the brand to new heights, balancing business acumen with creative prowess. Subsequent creative directors, such as Stefano Pilati and Hedi Slimane, continued to shape Yves Saint Laurent’s legacy, crafting fresh silhouettes and pushing the boundaries of fashion.
Fast forward to today, Anthony Vaccarello has helmed the brand since 2016, combining his contemporary vision with the brand’s rich heritage. His designs, like the exaggerated shoulders in Saint Laurent’s men’s and women’s collections, echo the house’s commitment to innovation and mastery of tailoring. The elegance of the ’70s to ’90s era finds new life under Vaccarello’s direction, bridging the gap between classic and modern, redefining power dressing with an androgynous and casual sensibility. From iconic tuxedos to fluid, sensual dresses, Vaccarello crafts pieces that encapsulate the present while honoring the brand’s iconic past—a fitting testament to Yves Saint Laurent’s enduring legacy of empowerment through fashion.
