Featuring the star pieces from fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent's art collection – including works by Cézanne, Picasso, Mondrian and Matisse

Yves Saint Laurent was more than a designer of clothing – he was, for many, one of the great style arbiters of the twentieth century. His talent made him the youngest and brightest star in the firmament of fashion, first with Christian Dior, who chose him as his successor, and later in his own right as the shy but daring creator of the modern woman’s wardrobe.

His private life was the subject of constant public fascination, and the homes that he shared with his lifelong friend and business partner Pierre Bergé were extraordinary private cocoons of taste and style. Ivan Terestchenko’s photographs – taken after Yves Saint Laurent’s death in 2008 – capture these exquisite surroundings and cultured luxury for the last time.

Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé amassed an exceptional collection of furniture and paintings over some forty years. It included important works by Picasso, Matisse and Mondrian, Old Master paintings by Goya, Ingres and Géricault, and masterpieces of furniture, sculpture and silver from the Renaissance to Art Deco.

Not a single piece from the collection was sold until the year following Saint Laurent’s death. A historic sale by auction at the Grand Palais in Paris became the stuff of legend months before it even took place.

This book, revealing a rare union of passion, taste and supreme connoisseurship, stands as a monument to two of the greatest taste-makers of our time.

About the Authors:

Robert Murphy is Paris correspondent for American fashion and lifestyle magazines W and Women’s Wear Daily
Born in England and educated in France, Ivan Terestchenko read History of Art at the Ecole du Louvre and was a painter until the age of 30 when he switched to photography and landed his first assignment with French Vogue. He contributes to many international publications.

An intimate look at the famed designer and his work, revealing his artistic process and influence. Modernizing haute couture. Pioneering high-end ready-to-wear. Bringing masculine ease to women’s clothing. Legendary fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent’s reputation precedes him — but what of the man behind the work? Fashion historian and YSL expert Florence Müller traces Saint Laurent’s career, from aspiring designer to Christian Dior’s protégé to director of his own fashion house from 1961 until 2002.

The book emphasizes the designer’s creative process — his inspirations, the conception and fabric selection, the various stages of fitting and production — and takes the reader behind the scenes of the atelier. Also featured are original sketches, runway shots, and never-before-published photographs of Saint Laurent at work, as well as new photography of iconic YSL designs from the exhibition, including the first Tuxedo pantsuit (1966), the Safari tunic (1968), the Mondrian dress (1965), and the Wesselmann dress (1966).

The book also includes a 1991 interview from Le Figaro with the late designer. This focused exploration shows how Saint Laurent’s radical clothes for the modern woman — presented here in gorgeous detail — continue to inspire fashion lovers and fans of art and design for their innovation and perfection of style.

About the Author:

Florence Müller is a highly regarded fashion historian who has written extensively on Yves Saint Laurent and other renowned designers. Pierre Bergé is the cofounder of Yves Saint Laurent Couture House and president of Fondation Pierre Bergé–Yves Saint Laurent, dedicated to preserving the legacy of the fashion designer. Kimerly Rorschach is the Illsley Ball Nordstrom Director and CEO of the Seattle Art Museum.

This definitive portrait of the creative genius who transformed fashion is the first major English-language biography of Yves Saint Laurent since his death in 2008, featuring exclusive interviews of those who knew him best, by one of the most respected names in French fashion.

Yves Saint Laurent's impact on fashion is legendary, yet he remains an enigmatic and compelling figure. Tracing the development of Saint Laurent's visionary work through his charmed yet tumultuous life, respected fashion writer Laurence Benaïm's newly translated and updated biography of the famed designer explores how this unassuming prodigy became a legendary, celebrated public icon who changed the face of fashion, style, and celebrity.

Enriched by the author's exclusive interviews--from Saint Laurent's partner Pierre Bergé to family members, his atelier staff, and muses such as Catherine Deneueve, LouLou de la Falaise, and Paloma Picasso--this fascinating biography chronicles early glimpses of Saint Laurent's talent in Oran and his star trajectory, from leading the House of Dior at the age of twenty-one to his fall from grace and subsequent forging with Pierre Bergé, fashion's most enduring and successful professional partnership. In portraying the man behind the timeless icons of the Mondrian-print shift dress and the Le Smoking trouser suit -- who partied with Warhol in New York and relaxed with the jet set in his Marrakesh hideaway -- Benaïm powerfully illuminates both the glittering world of haute couture and the business empire that revolutionized the fashion industry.

About the Author:

Journalist and fashion writer Laurence Benaïm has written many books including Lancel: Parisian Maison Since 1876, Women in Dior: Portraits of Elegance, Dior: The New Look Revolution, and a biography of Yves Saint Laurent. She created the style supplement for the newspaper Le Monde and has contributed to Vogue and Marie Claire. She is an editorial adviser for Le Figaro.

In collaboration with Fondation Pierre Bergé–Yves Saint Laurent.

Yves Saint Laurent's signature style intertwines references from the art world with those of popular culture and social revolution. Since its establishment in the 1960s by the designer and Pierre Bergé, the Yves Saint Laurent haute couture house has redefined femininity, creating arguably the most famous (and sexiest) suit for women, "Le Smoking" tuxedo, and innovative collections with names such as Pop Art, Ballet Russes, and Picasso.

This retrospective book is the first to cover the forty years of Yves Saint Laurent and highlights the inventive character of the designer's work. Over 160 of his finest designs and accessories, all taken from the Fondation Pierre Bergé–Yves Saint Laurent collection, are presented. The book is the companion volume to an exhibition that will travel to The Montreal Museum of Fine Art and the de Young Museum in San Francisco.

About the Author:

British-born Hamish Bowles is a fashion journalist, curator, and currently European editor-at-large for Vogue. He lives in New York City. 
Florence Müller is a historian, a correspondent for the magazine Surface, and a professor at Institut Français de la mode in Paris where she lives.

A dazzling portrait of Yves Saint Laurent and his world of fashion, by legendary photographer Roxanne Lowit, who pioneered backstage fashion photography

Few couturiers were as influential as the great Yves Saint Laurent. He pioneered ‘le smoking’ and ready-to-wear. Drawing inspiration from diverse cultures and contexts, he was a master at telling new stories through his designs. He toyed with stereotypes and reframed the familiar – elevating streetwear, reimagining the peasant blouse as an item of luxury, reinventing traditionally male cuts for his modern woman. Some of his haute-couture collections won rave reviews, while others sparked controversy – but they never failed to stir conversation, inspire trends, and point to the future.

Saint Laurent’s path crossed with that of photographer Roxanne Lowit in 1978. He was unveiling his latest collection in Paris when she first ventured backstage, a newcomer who had just read the instruction manual for her new camera. Thus began a professional relationship – and mutual admiration – that would last for a quarter-century. She captured the behind-the-scenes dynamism at his shows. And when the Metropolitan Museum of Art unveiled a retrospective of his work – the first time it had bestowed such an honour on a living designer – she was there to capture it all as his official photographer.

As Saint Laurent dressed le beau monde, Lowit photographed it. His work was luxe and louche, beautiful and brazen, and she captured his creations as they came to life on the glamorous people who wore his famed label. Through her unique lens, one shares stolen glances and gorgeous glimpses of what can be created by the hand and the eye of a master. Through her images, one experiences the vibrant, visual power of Yves Saint Laurent.

A tortured genius and one of the most influential designers of the twentieth century, Yves Saint Laurent was responsible for revolutionising the way women dressed and viewed themselves.

During a wildly creative career stretching from 1958 to2002 Saint Laurent established a reputation for accessible, flawlessly cut clothes. He became an overnight sensation in 1958, aged 21 when he showed his 'Trapeze' collection, his first for the House of Christian Dior, following the master's death. Four years later, Saint Laurent opened his own couture house and within a few seasons was hailed by Vogue's Diana Vreeland as 'the pied piper of fashion'.

Viewed as a master colourist and admired for his choice of sultry fabrics, his great gift was creating lasting styles - described by Vogue as 'stockpiles of essentials in times of famine' - that flattered all shapes and sizes. As well as designing wardrobe classics like the 'Le Smoking' tuxedo for women, the Safari jacket, the trench and the pea coat, and introducing trousers into haute couture, he also dressed international style icons such as Catherine Deneuve, Marella Agnelli and Lauren Bacall. With his nose for the zeitgeist, Saint Laurent recognized the global power of street fashion and launched Rive Gauche, his ready-to-wear boutique line in 1966.

Christened 'The Saint' by Vogue, every element of his fashion empire, which included exhilarating couture collections, exquisite accessories and sought-after perfumes, was captured by Vogue's writers and leading photographers like Richard Avedon, David Bailey and Norman Parkinson.

One of the most distinctive and influential designers of the second half of the twentieth century, Yves Saint Laurent takes his place in the pantheon of French couturiers, alongside Coco Chanel, Christian Dior, and Jeanne Lanvin

"Yves Saint Laurent", the first comprehensive retrospective of his life’s work, will accompany an exhibition of some 250 garments from the collection of the Fondation Pierre Bergé - Yves Saint Laurent at the Petit Palais in Paris.

From his early days working under Dior and heading the House of Dior after his mentor’s death, to the opening of his first prêt a porter shop on the Rive Gauche and the debut of the Le Smoking tuxedo, to the muses he adored, Loulou de la Falaise and Catherine Deneuve among them, this volume reveals the breadth and scope of the designer’s entire career. With a preface by Pierre Bergé, author Faride Chenoune explores the sources of inspiration that drove Saint Laurent’s continuous innovation, drawing upon painting, sculpture, theater, opera, literature, and cinema.  

About the Authors:

Farid Chenoune is a fashion historian and author of several books, including A History of Men's Fashion and Beneath It All: A Century of French Lingerie, as well as a contributor to French Vogue. He lives in Paris.  

Florence Müller has written many books and catalogues and organized several exhibitions on fashion history and the phenomenon of contemporary fashion. She teaches these subjects at the Institut français de la Mode. She worked as UFAC Director and Curator at the Musée des Arts de la Mode, Paris. Among other titles, she has published Costume Jewelry for Haute Couture and Art & Fashion.

Yves Saint Laurent Icons of Fashion Design, acclaimed by the critics as an intoxicating book remains the most attractive homage to the uncrowned king of haute couture.

Pictures taken by the world's leading fashion photographers trace the success of Saint Laurent's designs, which, since conquering the fashion world five decades ago, have caused sensation after sensation each year. The book also constitutes a high-quality review of fashion photography over a period of forty years, collecting 135 YSL dresses in images created by fashion photography's greatest 20th century heroes.

Yves Saint Laurent was equipped with an infallible instinct for reading the aesthetic signs of the times, and this enabled him to have a profound effect on fashion in the second half of the 20th century.

Timid and reclusive, Yves Saint Laurent resigned his post as hand-pick ed successor to the great Dior and went out on his own after the death of his mentor. With Pierre Berge, the author of this book, he created an empire that has stongly influenced female fashion. He has been one of the most inventive designers, creating surprises year after year.