Yves Saint Laurent

It's important to remember how artistically gifted and incredibly creative clothing designers are. I forget this sometimes when outrageous outfits come strutting down the runways on models' emaciated bodies. But after seeing the extraordinary Yves Saint Laurent exhibit today at Paris' Petit Palais, I have a renewed respect for designers.

Room after room contained simple white mannequins wearing Saint Laurent's exquisite creations, from ball gowns, to simple day dresses, to his famous le smoking, to safari jackets, and on and on. I found myself talking to myself a lot, in wonderment over the beautiful tailoring and workmanship of the clothing. The pants, dresses, skirts, jackets, and hats were true works of art. It was fascinating to see YSL's inspirations; works by Mondrian and Picasso could be seen interpreted by the designer in jackets and skirts; and he looked at the colors and history of art and clothing in Africa, Spain, Russia, and China to influence some of his most striking pieces.

The second to last room featured 4 rows of black clothing he designed perched on the wall on black mannequins. Breathtaking!