Reclusive and fragile, Yves Saint Laurent became the grand malade of French fashion when he withdrew from societal limelight, and began battling a mysterious illness in the late 1980s.
Despite dealing with his illness privately, Saint Laurent did not officially hang up his measuring tape until early 2002.
The designer’s business and former-personal partner Pierre Bergé accredited the retirement to Saint Laurent’s frustrations with the fashion industry. “We have entered the era of marketing, at the expense of creativity,” he said.
But YSL’s retirement came as no surprise. Throughout the nineties; the designer became gradually more and more withdrawn from fashion circles, emerging only twice a year for brief bows at his haute couture shows.
Reportedly, the designer spent the decade in and out of Parisian hospitals; his rare public appearances revealed a fragile, dishevelled and disorientated man.
Rumours surrounding the designer’s health naturally followed. Gossips and the press tagged YSL with three Ds – “drink, drugs and disease”.
The designer directly addressed the drink and drugs rumours at his retirement press conference, "I've known fear and terrible solitude," Saint Laurent said. "Tranquilizers and drugs, those phoney friends. The prison of depression and hospitals. I've emerged from all this, dazzled but sober."
When he died in June 2008, ambiguous reports from The Associated Press stated the fashion icon had died “following a long illness”. This led to intensified rumours surrounding this mysterious illness. As a result, Pierre Bergé was forced to publicly state that Saint Laurent did not have the AIDS virus.
Gossip columnists were quick to question this - outlandishly highlighting the designer’s sympathies with sufferers of the virus as some sort of proof. In 1993, YSL dedicated his January couture collection to Rudolf Nureyev, the Russian ballet dancer who had recently died of AIDS at the time.
These rumours have found fresh wind due to last month’s record-breaking auction at Christie’s, which saw the designer’s collection of treasures and art fetch €353.5million, a large sum of which will go towards AIDS research.
This press intrusion into Yves Saint Laurent’s personal life is relentless even posthumously, but without leaked medical records, the true nature of his death will not be known and speculation will no doubt continue.
In reality, whatever illness he suffered from is irrelevant. However, press and gossip insistence and the staunch denial by Bergé does raise questions about the stigma of AIDS and whether it is still prevalent in society today.
AIDS has been associated with marginalised groups such as homosexuals, drug users and sex workers and it cannot be denied that such associations result in discrimination and stigmatisation.
An attitude epitomised in the extreme by former US Senator Jesse Helms who routinely opposed AIDS research funding because he believed sufferers contracted the illness through “deliberate, disgusting, revolting conduct”. He later did approve funding for AIDS support for Africa, but not for the U.S.
There is a strong tradition of ‘undisclosed illnesses’ in the celebrity world and among the general public when it comes to HIV and AIDS.
Freddie Mercury was one celebrity who was criticised for his reluctance to admit his HIV status; he admitted the illness on the day he died. It can never be known how many people have suffered from this continuously ‘undisclosed illness’.
In recent years however, big name celebrities have lent their faces and voices to help de-stigmatise the illness. There was the ‘What’s Going On’ album which featured pop stars from Britney Spears to Michael Stipe covering the eponymous Marvin Gaye track to raise awareness and proceeds for AIDS programmes.
Product Red has been a successful model of branding by Bono and businessman/politico Bobby Shriver, which has seen big name multi-nationals like Apple, Converse, Armani, Dell and American Express release Red products specifically marketed as supportive to the AIDS effort in Africa. This has seen over $110million raised to support life-saving work.
U.S. basketball star Magic Johnson who is directly affected by HIV has been an active spokesperson in campaigns to help HIV and AIDS awareness. The sports star healthy appearance after seventeen years since diagnosis gives a hopeful and unashamed public face to living with HIV, demystifying the mysterious illness for future generations.
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