"Yves Saint Laurent's perspective on history and fashion, as portrayed in his photography"
In the heart of the Festival des Rencontres d'Arles, running from July 7 to October 5, 2025, an exhibition titled "Yves Saint Laurent et la photographie" is set to captivate visitors with a unique display of photographs that pay tribute to the legendary fashion designer.
The exhibition is a continuation of the collaboration between Phaidon and the Yves Saint Laurent Museum in Paris, who worked together to publish the book "Yves Saint Laurent et la photographie". This book, with 160 pages, recounts the history of fashion through the lens of Yves Saint Laurent, and features contributions from fashion photography experts such as Elsa Janssen, Simon Baker, Serena Bucalo-Mussely, Clémentine Cuinet, Alice Morin, and Christoph Wiesner, director of the Festival de Fotografía Rencontres d'Arles.
The book, and now the exhibition, offers a dialogue between fashion and photography, showcasing iconic and previously unseen photographs from the Yves Saint Laurent archives. These photographs, captured by the most famous photographers of the 20th century over decades, include intimate moments from Yves Saint Laurent's personal and professional life. Polaroids of fittings, moments in the workshops of number 5 avenue Marceau, and intimate photos of the designer in his apartments are all included.
The exhibition is dedicated to the theme of the book, and features works from renowned photographers such as Richard Avedon, Irving Penn, Sarah Moon, Peter Lindbergh, Helmut Newton, Juergen Telles, and Bettina Rheims. The introduction in the book was written by Jean-Loup Sieff, and Madison Cox, president of the Fondation Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent and the Yves Saint Laurent Museum in Paris, has written an introduction for the exhibition.
"Yves Saint Laurent's life and work are intertwined with the golden age of photography," Madison Cox writes in his prologue. This exhibition offers a unique opportunity to view a selection of photographs from the book in a physical setting, continuing the tribute to Yves Saint Laurent, the founder of the Yves Saint Laurent house, as seen in the book.
The book, and now the exhibition, is a tribute to Yves Saint Laurent, a testament to his impact on fashion photography, and a celebration of his life and work. It invites visitors to delve into the world of Yves Saint Laurent, and to appreciate the visual impact of his work on fashion and photography.
