The book every fashion lover will want this summer…
What if we could leaf through the history of fashion through a single eye – that of Yves Saint Laurent, captured by the greatest photographers of the 20th century? This is precisely the ambition of “Yves Saint Laurent et la photographie”, published by Phaidon in collaboration with the Musée Yves Saint Laurent Paris, available in bookshops from July 10, 2025.
A book that pays tribute to light and vision
This beautiful 160-page book, with a foreword by Madison Cox and Christoph Wiesner, includes iconic shots as well as rare unpublished images from the couture house’s archives. Richard Avedon, Irving Penn, Sarah Moon, Peter Lindbergh, Helmut Newton, Juergen Teller and Bettina Rheims: all have crossed paths with the couturier, and all have revealed a different side of him.
The result? A multi-faceted visual narrative, in which we discover not only the creator at work, but also the man, in the studio as well as backstage, in intimacy as well as in the spotlight.
When the couturier blends into the image
“The life and work of Yves Saint Laurent are intertwined with what is often called the golden age of photography,” writes Madison Cox in the introduction. Indeed, this link is as instinctive as it is fundamental: photography built the YSL legend, at the same time as his creations redefined the female body under the lens.
One of the most striking shots in the book is undoubtedly the one taken by Jeanloup Sieff in 1971: a naked Saint Laurent, glasses on his nose, sitting on leather cushions. This image, conceived for a perfume advert, has become a manifesto. It overturns gender codes and aesthetic norms, and asserts the figure of the creator as the subject of the image.
A rare and touching behind-the-scenes look
But the book doesn’t just list the great images. It also reveals what goes on behind the scenes: Polaroids of fittings, stolen moments in the workshops at 5 avenue Marceau, intimate photos of Pierre Bergé and Yves Saint Laurent in their apartments, models captured on the spot – Naomi Campbell, Laetitia Casta, Claudia Schiffer, among others – in the gentleness of daily work.
These rarer documents offer a different reading: that of a photosensitive creator who had as much respect for the muses as for the image. They also illustrate, says David Bailey, “how Saint Laurent made women beautiful – an essential condition for successful photography”.
A mirror exhibition in Arles
To coincide with the book’s release, the Festival des Rencontres d’Arles is dedicating an exhibition to the same theme, from July 7 to October 5, 2025. Co-produced with the Musée Yves Saint Laurent Paris, it will bring together a selection of the photographs featured in the book, in a scenographically-designed display that highlights the subtle dialogue between fashion and photography.
Texts byElsa Janssen, Simon Baker, Serena Bucalo-Mussely, Clémentine Cuinet and Alice Morin enrich the book with fascinating critical readings on fashion photography, its construction, its narrative power, and the lasting visual impact of Saint Laurent’s work.
Practical information
📖 Title: Yves Saint Laurent et la photographie
📆 Publication date: July 10, 2025 (France)
📍 Publisher: Phaidon
📚 Format: 160 pages – Beautifully illustrated book
💬 Forewords and texts: Madison Cox, Christoph Wiesner, Elsa Janssen, Simon Baker, Serena Bucalo-Mussely, Alice Morin, Clémentine Cuinet
🎟️ Associated exhibition: Yves Saint Laurent and photography, at the Rencontres d’Arles
📅 Exhibition dates: July 7 – October 5, 2025
🌐 Further information: www.phaidon.com | www.museeyslparis.com
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