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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not a full retrospective, but an incredible look into the creative process, February 1, 2011
This review is from: Yves Saint Laurent Style (Paperback)
It's been years since I've written a review on Amazon, but the reviews I've seen for this book have compelled me to write again. The strengths - and weaknesses - of YSL Style become more apparent when compared to the other recent YSL book from the same publisher ( Yves Saint Laurent), which has received more positive reviews. From this point on, I will refer to the two books as "YSL Style" (pink book) and "YSL" (black book). The quality of the printing and paper for YSL Style is good but not as luxurious as YSL. If your sole criterion for deciding whether to purchase a book is based on its status as an object and collectible, then YSL is the clear choice over YSL Style. If you are more interested in the content, then read on, because the two books serve different purposes. YSL Style contains a generous number of the designer's drawings, far more than I've seen in any other fashion book. It provides great insight into the creative process and the evolution of ideas not just of Saint Laurent himself but also more generally in the arts and design. In this regard, YSL Style is distinct from most fashion retrospectives, more introverted; the reader peeks into Saint Laurent's sketchbook. The view is of Saint Laurent as an artist, like a painter in working in a studio rather than a figure in the glamorous world of celebrity and commerce. In many other ways, YSL Style likely falls short of YSL. The latter book shows much more final work, more photographs than drawings. It also better conveys the ways in which Saint Laurent's designs were received, in terms of fashion shows, media coverage, and how people wore his clothes. As a retrospective, YSL provides a 360-degree view, while YSL Style is more focused. Some readers may view this as a limitation of YSL Style. I found the proximity to the very spark of creativity to be exhilarating.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
As an introduction and overview, wonderful!, February 9, 2009
This review is from: Yves Saint Laurent Style (Paperback)
Given the recent death of M. Yves Saint Laurent, one can only hope that this is but the first of many volumes to come devoted to this extraordinary talent. As an introduction to his Haute Couture and Rive Gauche collections this paperback volume is surprisingly jam-packed with good images and copies of his drawings. For further reading and contemplation of M. Saint Laurent's work, I suggest the following titles, if you can find them. The first, is the exhibition catalogue published by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in conjunction with their 1983-84 exhibition. "Yves Saint Laurent", 1983, ASIN: B00188CAQU. The second, is a beautiful volume entitled "Yves Saint Laurent: Images of Design 1958-1988", 1988, ASIN: B000ON4GCQ For an insight into M. Saint Laurent's life and the process of Haute Couture, I recommend the marvelous DVD entitled "Yves Saint Laurent - His Life and Times/5 Avenue Marceau 75116 Paris", released in 2007 and available, as of this writing, here at AMAZON.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Franks, February 10, 2009
This review is from: Yves Saint Laurent Style (Paperback)
Went to see the display at the musuem at Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. Yves Saint Laurent: Style Then purchased the book. It was a good addition to the sight seeing and gives us great pleasure to review what we had seen.
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