Yves Saint Laurent

Yves Saint Laurent was born in Algeria in 1936 to French parents. He became an apprentice with Dior at the age of 18. Raised in an upper class family, his mother arranged for him to meet with the editor of French Vogue at the age of 17. Following training at the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture he became acquainted with Christian Dior. After Dior’s death in 1957, YSL assumed responsibility. In 1966, he founded his own fashion label. The 1960s witnessed the ground-breaking debut of the Le Smoking, an adaptation of the menswear tuxedo for women, that earned him great fame. He was the first living designer to receive a solo exhibition in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1983.