INTIMATELY YVES
An immersive experience in the world of a Genius
“I would like my dresses and my drawings to be studied in a hundred years.” You can almost see Yves Saint Laurent as he expresses this desire, a desire that could not have been denied to this couturier who, more than anyone, made fashion an art. A precursor by definition. The most sublime and revolutionary who has ever appeared on the stage of fashion in the 20th century. October 3rd became an historical date for the world of fashion. The Headquarters of the Maison on Avenue Marceau (ed. its original location in 1974) opened its doors to the public, thus consecrating the Musée Yves Saint Laurent Paris. An honor that establishes the inalienability of
what it contains: 35 thousand works, 7 thousand fabrics, 5 thousand silhouettes, 15 thousand accessories, and also: magazines, photos of artists, Polaroid shots, and art, as stated by the Director of the Museum, Aurélie Samuel. Yet, what makes this treasure chest of pure passion unique is what we encounter after having first visited the halls that exhibit pieces of iconic couture, works of art that inspired the designer’s entire life, and unreleased documentaries.
The visit finally culminates in the studio of Monsieur Saint Laurent. The essence of the Museum. What we see before our eyes is an intimist environment, rather than a memorial. Aurélie Samuel explains that the objective was to recreate the space as it once was in 2002 (ed. the year the Maison YSL closed its doors), to remember the master and his wishes, where visitors can truly experience the esprit of the artist, the effervescence of his work, where they can comprehend both the history of his collections and the Saint Laurent style, the creative process, and all the sources of inspiration that have built the reputation of this important Maison over the years. This, while a mirror, the main element in the studio,
majestically covers an entire wall. Yves never looked directly at his creations. He used the mirror because it “creates the distance needed to appreciate the clothes”. Many of his objects can still be admired on his marble worktop: the walking stick that Yves inherited from Dior, his trademark spectacles, colored pencils, the “saharienne” in hessian, Loulou de la Falaise’s chair where she sat to work on her accessories, rolls of fabrics, thousands of portraits, books, sketches, gems, buttons, colors, pencils and, at the feet of the chair where his white smock rests, the bowl of his faithful bulldog, Moujik. Also in October, another YSL Museum was inaugurated in Marrakesch where, as Pierre Bergé once recounted, “Yves liked to escape to draw from morning till night, in this oasis where the colors of Matisse blended with those of nature”.