YVES SAINT LAURENT, A VISIONARY

Pierre Bergé once said that "Fashion is not an art, even if to exist it needs an artist", and I think there are no better words to describe Yves Saint Laurent, an artist whose creativity and imagination gave an immense contribution to the last 50 years of fashion. So, imagine my joy when I heard that the exhibition "exhibition Yves Saint Laurent - A Visionary" opened in Brussels. There I had the chance to admire some of his most iconic haute couture and ready-to-wear creations, unpublished documents and videos that helped me to better understand his unique aesthetic.

The exhibition illustrates YSL's careers from 1962 to 2002. The part I liked most is the collection of drawings and fabric samples, which basically illustrate the evolution of his design and inspiration. In these sketches, it is possible to admire not only the work of an aesthetic genius, but also that of an incredibly gifted craftsman. As Florence Müller, the curator of the exhibition, noted: "The themes of masculine-feminine, the association of contraries, the clash of colours, the hidden-unveiled, the modularity of dresses, the encounter between the spirit of sport and the sophistication of haute couture, of simplified, easy-to-living clothing" are all present in those drawings.

And of course I just marvelled in front of the amazing selection of Mondrian dresses. Again in the words of Ms. Müller: "By translating Mondrian's universe, and then those of of Tom Wesselmann and Serge Poliakoff, Saint Laurent achieved the transformation of two-dimentional paintings into three-dimensional forms. He paved the way for 'minimal' clothing, freed from decorative conventions expected in fashion". Personally, if I could choose between one of these dresses and a real Mondrian, I would go for the first one without hesitation.

If you like fashion or if you just like an interesting life, you will have until the 5 May to get a glimpse of Yves Saint Laurent's beautiful universe.