After taking over as art director for Dior, Saint Laurent launched his first collection for the company, the Ligne Trapéze, that year. It was a resounding success the world over and won him a Neiman Marcus Oscar.
Yves Henri Donat Mathieu Saint Laurent was a French fashion designer who was considered 'one of the greatest figures in French fashion in the 20th century'. He was born on 1st August, 1936.
In 1966, he introduced le smoking, his legendary smoking suit, which prompted the consequent androgynous revolution.
In 1983, he became the first living fashion designer to be honored by the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
In October 1998, Yves Saint Laurent showed his last ready-to-wear collection for the Rive Gauche label he had founded more than 30 years before. But, according to a sorrowful spokeswoman, the 61-year old designer was simply too overwrought to take his final bow.
In 2001, he was awarded the rank of Commander of the Légion d'Honneur by French president Jacques Chirac.
He also created a foundation with Pierre Bergé in Paris to trace the history of the house of YSL, complete with 15,000 objects and 5,000 pieces of clothing.
In January 2002, the 65-year-old designer announced his retirement. Paying tribute to his mentors, including Christian Dior, Balenciaga, Schiaparelli and Chanel, he revealed that his decision was based on a disgust with an industry that had become ruled more by commercial gain than art. "I have nothing in common with this new world of fashion, which has been reduced to mere window-dressing," he said. "Elegance and beauty have been banished."
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