"The importance of accessories cannot be overstated. They are what transform a dress," declared Yves Saint-Laurent in 1977. For the 60th anniversary of his first fashion show, the designer's creations are currently on display in six Parisian museums.

The opportunity for us to look back at six iconic looks and complete them... Penelope Gallery version of course!

 

 

 

The dinner jacket

 

1966: Yves Saint-Laurent was the first to offer women this central piece of men's wardrobe. Although haute couture clients shunned it, when the couturier offered it in his Saint Laurent Rive Gauche ready-to-wear line, the dinner jacket was a hit!

Saint Laurent dinner jacket by Helmut Newton, 1961

 

Watch chain, chain bracelet, signet ring, mix up the genres.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mondrian

 

Picasso, Matisse, Wesselmann, Van Gogh... Yves Saint-Laurent never ceased to pay tribute to painting. But if there is only one series to remember, it is the Mondrian dresses of 1965. And do you know what the first painting the designer acquired for his incredible collection was? We assure you, it's nothing to get worked up about.

 

Piet Mondrian tribute dress, 1965

 

Art Deco or modernist jewellery, have fun with coloured geometry!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Saharan

 

Inspired by the outfits worn by Westerners in Africa, the safari jacket is the preserve of the explorer. As sexy as Indiana Jones, the model Veruschka wore a laced-up model created for Vogue magazine in the summer of 1968.

 

 Saharienne worn by Countess Vera Gottliebe Anna von Lehndorff known as Veruschka photographed by Franco Rubartelli for Vogue, 1965.

 

Shark tooth pendant, snake ring or flail earring, display your wild beauty.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Proust

 

In 1971, Marie-Hélène de Rothschild organised a costume ball to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Marcel Proust's birth. Yves-Saint Laurent, who had always felt a strong emotional connection with the writer, designed a series of dresses inspired by the Belle Époque for the occasion.

Below is the one worn by Jane Birkin, another fashion icon!

 

 Left: Jane Birkin wearing the dress (right) designed by Yves Saint-Laurent for the Proust Ball, 1971

 

Bracelet with flowers and garlands, marquise rings and medallions: express your sensitivity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ballets russes

 

If art is a source of inspiration for Saint-Laurent, so is exoticism. In 1976, he designed a collection in homage to the Ballets Russes, which he described as a "painter's collection". The couturier mixed influences (this image evokes both the Russia of the Tsars and the painting Femmes d'Alger dans leur appartement by Delacroix) for a bohemian chic collection.

 

Ballets Russes Collection, 1976

 

Earrings, harem rings or poison rings, be the most beautiful to dance with Nureyev or bewitch Rasputin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eve

 

We can't tell which is sexier, the dress or Lætitia Casta! This bride straight out of the Garden of Eden closes the spring-summer 1999 show.

 

 Lætitia Casta, wedding dress from the 1999 PE haute couture show

 

A wedding planned this year? A "Fidèle" brooch, a gold and pearl band or a daisy ring, discover our selection of romantic jewellery. And for even more ideas, visit the wedding selection !

 

 

 

 

 

 

******

 

Yves Saint-Laurent's creations can be found at the Centre Pompidou, the Louvre, the Musée National d'Art Moderne, the Musée d'Orsay, the Musée Picasso and the Musée Yves Saint-Laurent until 15 May 2022.

More information on the YSL Museum website via this link.