ST. LAURENT, YVES 1936-

"BOY WONDER" OF FRENCH FASHION AND CHRISTIAN DIOR'S SUCCESSOR

Born in Algeria

Born and raised in Oran, Algeria, Yves St. Laurent went to Paris at age seventeen to try his luck in theatrical and fashion design. After winning first prize for a cocktail dress he designed for the International Wool Secretariat competition, he was taken to meet Christian Dior, the famous designer. After a fifteen-minute interview Dior hired the nineteen-year-old St. Laurent. Dior became St. Laurent's mentor and said of him, "St. Laurent is my right arm. I need him."

House of Dior

Dior died unexpectedly in October 1957, and twenty-one-year-old St. Laurent was named to succeed the master as head designer of the House of Dior. His first showing, in 1958, was a smash hit as his Trapeze, or "little-girl look," took the fashion world by storm. After the showing Parisians demonstrated in the street and chanted, "St. Laurent has saved France." The Trapeze was as popular in America as elsewhere in the late 1950s. His last fashion collection for the House of Dior was in 1960, when he introduced the "chic beatnik" look, featuring knit turtleneck collars, heavy-knit sleeves, and black leather jackets edged in fur.

His Own House

In 1962 St. Laurent opened his own house of haute couture. He began his Rive Gauche ready-to-wear label in 1966, and in 1974 he established his menswear. Since then his name and initials have been licensed for everything from sweaters and dresses to bed and bath linens, from eyeglasses to children's clothes. He has also created several perfumes, including the popular Paris.

Influence Continues

St. Laurent's label retained its popularity in America and around the world among high-fashion buyers. His day clothes are of the best fabric, simple, and of a slightly boyish quality. His evening clothes are soft and luxurious. In 1983 the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art mounted a retrospective of twenty-five years of his work, the first time a living designer had been so honored.