YSL Comes To UK

The first ever Yves Saint Laurent exhibition to be held in the UK is coming to County Durham this July. The Bowes Museum and the Fondation Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent - which is headed up by Pierre Bergé, the designer's partner - have collaborated to bring the retrospective, entitled Yves Saint Laurent: Style is Eternal, to British soil.

"The Fondation Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent is committed to the promotion of the work of Yves Saint Laurent internationally, and as such it is extremely exciting to work on this first exhibition in the UK," said Bergé. "The Bowes Museum is a natural destination given its exceptional work with fashion and textiles; the museum and its location also clearly reflects Saint Laurent's, and my own, passion for inspiring, timeless places. It is the perfect setting for us - a museum built as a French chateau, in the age of the Second Empire."

Comprising over 50 of the designer's most iconic and well-known garments, the show will give a comprehensive outline of his inspirations - and how he inspired - throughout his diverse and illustrious career, including his time as creative director of Christian Dior.

Yves and Pierre

"We are honoured to host the first exhibition in the UK of Yves Saint Laurent, one of the most influential fashion designers of all time," said Joanna Hashagen, the museum's fashion curator. "We are also thrilled to work alongside the Fondation Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent on an innovative display that will introduce a dialogue between the designer's body of work and the museum's collection. This certainly is a great moment in the history of the Bowes Museum, as well as for fashion display in the UK."