Mzgraciev: YSL Retrospective At The Petit Palais

above portrait by Jeanloup Sieff, 1972.

A retrospective of fashion legend Yves Saint Laurent opened yesterday at the Petit Palais in Paris, only two years after his death in 2008.

The impressive retrospective covers 15 chapters of his career, its critical acclaim and occasional failures, including his 1971 forties-inspired "scandal collection", which was pummeled by critics at the time.

above photos © Fondation Pierre Bergé - Yves Saint Laurent

The exhibit begins with his early work for Christian Dior and continues through to his last final collection, in 2002. In total, there are 307 pieces of couture and ready-to-wear fashions accompanied by films, artwork and photos.

above: Yves Saint Laurent in his Dior studio

above: Yves Saint Laurent in his own studio, 1986

Designs for Catherine Deneuve in the 1967 movie Belle de Jour, Lauren Bacall, and the Duchess Of Windsor are included as well as creations that were inspired by art, far away places (he is said to have used his imagination and preferred that to travel) and the glamour of Hollywood.

Okay, so it's not as impressive as the actual show, but here's a little retrospective I put together for you (in case you can't get to the Petit Palais) of many of the key pieces from his numerous and varied collections, in chronological order, along with some art and photos from the exhibit:

1958 (for Dior):

1958 and 1960 (for Dior):

1960 and 1962:

1965 (the famous Mondrian dress and a tribal inspired Raffia dress) :

1966 (lower left was for the YSL Rive Gauche Collection):

1967 (for Catherine Deneuve in Belle De Jour, for which he designed all her outfits):

Miss Deneuve with the designer:

1967 and 1968:

1968 and 1969 (for the Duchess of Windsor):

1969 and 1970:

1971 ( aka "the Scandal Collection"):

1971 (for Jane Birkin) and 1973 (for Lauren Bacall)

1976:

1977 and 1986:

1981 and 1982:

1990:

1992 and 1997:

2001:

2002 (his final collection):

His Love series of artwork, which he began in 1970:

1977:

1985:

above images of fashions and art from yslretrospective.com

An IIHIH tangent: Prunier Caviar has used YSL artwork on their special collection of LOVE caviar tins for many years. Due out this coming October is the one shown below:

There are also many vintage editorial and advertising photos included in the retrospective, such as the ones below.

The following photo of Yves Saint Laurent by Jeanloup Sieff taken in 1971 has become an iconic image of the couturier and is also included in the retrospective.