Yves Mathieu-Saint-Laurent (b. 1936, Oran, Algeria) began his career in Paris in 1955 as an assistant to renowned couturier Christian Dior. Following Dior’s sudden death in 1957, Yves Saint Laurent was appointed artistic director of the Musée Yves Saint Laurent Paris and his designs quickly gained critical acclaim. Dismissed from Dior in 1960 after military service and a subsequent hospitalization for depression, he founded his own couture house in partnership with Pierre Bergé, whom he had met in 1958. The first collection was presented in 1962 and the house became known for reinterpreting traditionally masculine garments like pantsuits and trench coats into bold, feminine looks that redefined the wardrobe of the modern woman.
In 1966, he launched SAINT LAURENT rive gauche, a ready-to-wear line with stores opened internationally. Influenced by different cultures, Yves Saint Laurent’s designs paid tribute to artists including Mondrian, Picasso and Van Gogh and drew inspiration from faraway places––most notably Marrakech. This prolific output spanned thirty years and was the subject of numerous awards and exhibitions across the globe. Yves Saint Laurent retired and closed the couture house in 2002, at which point the newly-formed Fondation Pierre Bergé–Yves Saint Laurent assumed responsibility for advancing and safeguarding his work. Yves Saint Laurent died at his Paris home on June 1, 2008, at the age of seventy-one.