Yves Saint Laurent Life in Pictures

Few things gave Yves Saint Laurent greater pleasure than to see a woman looking stunning in one of his designs. "The most beautiful clothes than can dress a woman are the arms of the man she loves," he once said. "But for those who haven't had the fortune of finding this happiness, I am there."

If Saint Laurent were alive today, he would have celebrated his 76th birthday at a time of great transition at the house he founded in 1962. But he surely would have appreciated how its new creative director Hedi Slimane is dedicated to honoring his memory. Even changing the name of the house to Saint Laurent Paris has been billed as a way to "return to the fundamentals of YSL."

Those fundamentals put women first. Saint Laurent clarified that he primarily made women's clothing in a 1965 episode of the game show What's My Line? "It pains me physically to see a woman victimized, rendered pathetic, by fashion," Saint Laurent said. In honor of his birthday, a look at his lifelong mission to make women look beautiful here in the gallery.

Source: Getty