![]() The designer responded instead with an official US launch of Opium, celebrating with a lavish, decadent party, a culturally eclectic concoction of pure fashion fantasy. And, true to form, following the Opium uproar, there was no diplomatic statement or apology from the fashion house. “I’d prefer to shock rather than bore through repetition,” he said. It was a moment of peak ‘Orient’ for YSL – the collection coincided with the launch of the fashion house’s Opium perfume, also influenced by the designer’s heady vision of Asia. The acclaimed autumn collection of 1977, Les Chinoises, is a central focus of the exhibition, with its red floral prints and dragon-scale motifs, silk-brocade jackets and gowns inspired by Imperial China. On display are more than 50 stunning couture designs that are clearly inspired by the cultures of India, China and Japan. The exhibition Dreams of the Orient certainly makes a strong case for Saint Laurent’s depth of knowledge about – and passion for – Asia’s cultures, as well as his ingenuity in reinterpreting them. – The Indian designer draping women in steel – Two new museums pay homage to the iconic Yves Saint Laurent So did the designer cross the line between cultural appreciation into appropriation? And can we judge the sensibility of the 1970s by the more progressive standards of today where authenticity is valued more highly, and cultural copycatting is a definite no-no? ![]() Saint Laurent’s preoccupation with the region verged on obsession, though he never visited India, and only visited China years after he had created his Asian-influenced collection. ![]()
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