The new man at YSL

ITALIAN DESIGNER BRINGS FEMININE CLASSICS BACK TO A VENERABLE PARIS FASHION HOUSE

By Nerissa Pacio
Mercury News

It was Stefano Pilati's version of casual Friday. The creative director for French fashion house Yves Saint Laurent flew in from Paris earlier this month for his first West Coast appearance sporting an off-white double-breasted suit coat, dotted tie, pocket square and crisp khaki trousers instead of his trademark three-piece suit.

This is California, not Paris, notes the lean, slick-haired Italian. And although he unabashedly admits he's always been a ``dandy,'' his goal in dressing for this particular afternoon at San Francisco's Neiman Marcus was to feel polished, presentable and comfortable.

This manner of scrupulously considered dress is Pilati's very definition of fashion and key to his long-term vision for the 44-year-old luxury brand.

``My work is special,'' says Pilati, 39, puffing a cigarette after a luncheon and fashion show of his spring 2006 collection for a select group of Bay Area socialites and clients. ``It's all about dressing up. You're supposed to. You should have the time to change during the day for different occasions. That is luxe to me.''

Pilati laughs and smiles during the interview with a candor unexpected of a man who has come under much industry scrutiny since taking the helm of YSL in 2004, replacing his American predecessor Tom Ford.

Ford, formerly creative director for the Gucci Group which owns the YSL label, transformed both waning brands with much-needed sex appeal and a celebrity following.

Ford left YSL and Gucci under tense circumstances and went on to launch his own beauty brand in partnership with cosmetics giant Estee Lauder. Pilati, who was Ford's right-hand man at YSL, stepped in for spring 2005 knowing that comparisons would be inevitable.

Now, after several collections -- his most recent a critical success on the Paris runways -- comparisons to Ford may have finally dissipated. At least Pilati hopes so.

``I've dealt with these comparisons because it was normal to deal with, but now it's time to stop. I mean, I didn't fire him. I didn't kill him!'' Pilati jokes. ``I worked with Tom side by side for seven days a week. But now it's over for me, and it should be over for everyone else. It's time to appreciate -- or to not appreciate -- the work.''

Indeed, critics have begun appreciating Pilati's work. The New York Times in April named him among an elite group of innovative designers dubbed the ``Paris six,'' and in the September Vogue, he is classified as one of the fashion world's ``Magnificent Seven'' alongside luminaries Marc Jacobs, Narciso Rodriguez and Miuccia Prada. In the November Esquire, Pilati is touted as ``one of the most innovative and creative minds in fashion.''

Pilati is the lesser known name, only recently garnering mainstream recognition. His impeccable résumé, however, tells the story of an ascent that was a long time in coming.

Born in the Italian fashion capital of Milan, Pilati studied environmental design before realizing his passion. He got hooked on fashion after working as an intern for designer Nino Cerruti. Shortly thereafter, he landed a job at a small Milanese velvet company in his 20s, studying textiles and selling fabric to major design houses in Europe.

By 1993, he was climbing the ladder first as a menswear assistant at Giorgio Armani, then at Prada in fabric research and development. In 1998, he became assistant designer for Miu Miu's men's and women's collections, Prada's more wearable sister label.

Ford then hired Pilati in 2000 as design director of YSL's ready-to-wear line. By 2004, Ford moved on and Pilati moved in as chief designer for all divisions of the YSL Rive Gauche label.

For his spring and resort 2006 collections, Pilati was inspired by Spanish culture, invoking the muses of Pablo Picasso for resort.

``I put myself in the position of a painter that is obsessed about a woman,'' Pilati says. ``I want to take portraits and portraits and portraits of her as Picasso did. Each work evolved as he painted them. . . . It's a mix of light and heavy, classic and flamboyant, folk and urban.''

Unlike Ford's overtly sexy glamour, Pilati takes cues from the house's ultra-feminine classics: high necklines, cinched waistlines and subtly sensual silhouettes.

Loyal followers like Marie Sparks-Allman, who have been wearing the brand for years, are eager to see how YSL will evolve with a fresh creative mind at work.

``I will be watching,'' says Sparks-Allman, 56, of Marin, at the San Francisco fashion show. ``I was uninterested when Ford was designing. It was too sexy. Too young. Too black and gray. It's exciting to see what Pilati is doing now. He's bringing elements back. I've always been drawn to Yves Saint Laurent's beautiful colors.''

Yves Saint Laurent, who retired in 2002 after 40 years in the business, opened his haute couture design house in Paris in 1961. He left behind a legacy of innovative Parisian style often influenced by artists such as Picasso and Mondrian.

While Laurent does not keep in touch with Ford or Pilati, Pilati says he will continue to uphold the values of the label, paying respect through his work to the man who created the house.

``Why? Because Mr. Laurent is still there and I have ethics, codes and principles,'' Pilati says.

Whether creating an extravagant pink ruffled chiffon evening gown or a trim, muted business suit, Pilati also keeps a specific vision of the woman he is designing for in mind.

``She comes from the French imagination -- the influence that Yves Saint Laurent had in 40 years of his work,'' Pilati says. ``She is very dynamic, fascinated and modern. Most women I know today are amazing -- they're wives, mothers, they have careers, they travel a lot, they are committed to their role, they are European, they are international. It's a lifestyle. But on top of all that, she's a woman who still finds the time to improve her personal style.''