Beginning his career in the late 1950s as the head fashion designer at the internationally renowned House of Dior in Paris, Yves St. Laurent (born 1936) quickly rose to become one of the most talented designers of haute couture of the twentieth century.

Yves St. Laurent possesses an unwavering confidence in his ability to design beautiful clothes. Innovative in his approach to style--he has adapted everything from 1930s platform shoes to military jackets to see-through dresses for display on Paris fashion runways. St. Laurent drew on his own sense of line, drape, and color, as well as inspirations gained from 1940s menswear, the paintings of Pablo Picasso, the designs of Coco Channel, and other influences, to make his name synonymous with style, and familiar to generations of sophisticated, fashion-conscious women and men. Through his many long-term friendships with such high-profile individuals as artist Andy Warhol, actress Catherine Deneuve, and...