Inna Zobova at Yves Saint Laurent

Through the Lens of Iris Brosch, we discover Inna Zobova at Yves Saint Laurent

In 2002, a major chapter in fashion history came to a close. After forty years of revolutionizing women’s wear, Yves Saint Laurent was preparing to leave the stage. As a result, he left behind an unparalleled legacy. Meanwhile, as the House entered a new era with Tom Ford, a final photographic series captured this fleeting moment.

Initiated by Franca Sozzani for Italian Vogue, Iris Brosch created these images in the couturier’s Paris atelier. Inna Zobova, an iconic model and Yves Saint Laurent muse, stood before her lens. Closely connected to the House, she embodied the designer’s spirit with elegance and intensity. Consequently, this happened as he prepared to say farewell.

In this exclusive interview with IRK Magazine, Iris Brosch reflects on this rare experience. It was shaped by emotion, creativity, and memory. Moreover, through her recollections and Inna Zobova’s captivating presence, a portrait of a bygone era emerges. As a result, it reveals the final echoes of Yves Saint Laurent’s extraordinary universe.

IRK: Your work consistently bridges photography with strong artistic references. Inspired by artists such as Mondrian, Matisse, and Picasso, Yves Saint Laurent blurred the boundaries between fashion and art. In essence, how does this relationship resonate within your own work?

Iris Brosch: The Polaroids you see were created for Italian Vogue in 2002. Franca Sozzani invited me to produce a photographic series as a homage to Monsieur Yves Saint Laurent. It was shot inside his atelier on Avenue George V. It was the last season of YSL before Tom Ford took over the House.

Inna Zobova, an iconic model who worked with the house for many years, was my muse. Indeed, together, we created exceptional images with a spirit of freedom that would hardly be possible today.

Firstly, Monsieur Yves Saint Laurent reminds us that every artist draws inspiration from other artists and their own changing times. His power lay in making women appear strong, self-confident, and fully present. With Le Smoking and his bold shoulders, he brought masculine codes into women’s fashion. This was revolutionary in fashion and in the way women could present themselves in society. He gave women authority, elegance, and presence, while blending strength and femininity. That vision continues to inspire artists and designers today.

Fashion inspires art, and art inspires fashion. The boundaries dissolve, creating space for something entirely new to emerge. Artists shape each creation through their vision. Yet their era and its cultural currents also shape their work. Together, they challenge us to rethink, see differently, and embrace new perspectives on humanity. Ultimately, they help society move forward.

IRK: The House of Yves Saint Laurent entered a new chapter under Tom Ford. At the same time, Pierre Bergé safeguarded its heritage. How did this transition influence the creative atmosphere? How did it shape your approach to photography?

Iris Brosch: Monsieur Yves Saint Laurent was still alive during the photoshoot. Although he was not present in the YSL atelier while I was working there. And yet, his spirit was everywhere.

We had the privilege of meeting Monsieur Pierre Bergé and many of the important figures of the House. Moreover, we were even granted access to photograph inside Yves Saint Laurent’s private office. A sacred space imbued with decades of creation, vision, rigor, and discipline.

There was a quiet melancholy in the air. A sense of a final season closing. A chapter of fashion history drawing to its end.

The retirement of Yves Saint Laurent in 2002 was far more than a business shift. It marked the end of forty years of fashion shaped by a singular artistic vision of Monsieur YSL. It was the transition from a house driven by a designer’s profound artistry to the era of global luxury branding.

Photography offered a way to hold onto a fleeting moment. We helped capture the legacy of Yves Saint Laurent while opening a visual conversation between memory, transformation, and renewal.

IRK: At that time, fashion houses often cultivated particularly close relationships with their photographers. How would you describe your personal and professional relationship with the House of Yves Saint Laurent? Was it a primarily contractual collaboration, or did it develop into a deeper artistic exchange?

Iris Brosch: Through Franca Sozzani and Italian Vogue, I was fortunate to work several times with Yves Saint Laurent. At that time, these collaborations were more than contractual. They were relationships built on trust, mutual respect, and a shared artistic vision. We worked closely over the years. That confidence allowed us to create iconic images. They captured not only fashion, but also the spirit of the Maison.

Deep, sustained relationships between photographers, magazines, and fashion houses now feel increasingly rare. Everything feels fast and interchangeable. Back then, there was time and space to explore, experiment, and let creativity unfold fully. That trust and continuity were essential to making work that endures.

The Polaroids capture the moments before and after the shoot. Inna Zobova is wrapped in a winter coat to keep warm, waiting in the cold. As soon as the photographing begins, she removes the coat and transforms. Smiling as if we were standing in the summer at Pont Alexandre III.

In that instant, her professionalism becomes visible: despite the harsh conditions, she remains fully focused, composed, and present, embodying the image with effortless conviction.

Using Andy Warhol’s portrait of Yves Saint Laurent, we experimented freely with composition and perspective, a creative liberty that would be difficult to imagine today.

IRK: During the years when Monsieur Yves Saint Laurent was still active, fashion photography was undergoing rapid transformation. On this occasion, how did you see your role as a photographer: documentarian, interpreter, or something in between?

Iris Brosch: I was young at the time and didn’t think too much about my role. I was simply there to create beautiful images for Italian Vogue. It was an homage to Monsieur Yves Saint Laurent, with the incredible model Inna Zobova. Inna had been working with the YSL House for years. The assistants of the atelier were invaluable, and we even included some of the seamstresses in the images. Nothing was laid out in advance or moodboarded, as we often do today. Everything followed the natural flow of human feeling and inspiration in the moment.

It was a fusion of energy. Unconscious, intuitive, but shared by everyone present, directed toward creating images that reflected the spirit of Monsieur YSL. We played with the portrait of YSL by Andy Warhol in the studio, experimented with light, textures, and movement. Anything that would help create strong, stunning images. Most of the communication wasn’t verbal; everything flowed
intuitively. There was no ego, no power game, just focus, collaboration, and joy.

Today, I consciously bring the spirit of the YSL shoot into my public performances. I hope to be able to create a tableaux vivant dedicated to Yves Saint Laurent soon. Celebrating his vision, his artistry, and the spirit of collaboration that first inspired me.

IRK: Saint Laurent established a lasting fashion art canon. Altogether, as an artist working across photography, fine art, and performance, how did this approach resonate with you? To clarify how did it shape your engagement with, or response to, the Yves Saint Laurent universe?

Iris Brosch: Yves Saint Laurent understood that fashion is inseparable from visual art. His dialogue with other artists, and later his connection to contemporary art, created a language where clothing became a canvas. In that language, the female body became a living sculpture. Evidently, that vision naturally aligned with my own practice. For me, photography is never just documentation. It is part of a larger artistic and cultural conversation.

Indeed, YSL inspires artists, photographers, painters, and designers alike. He created with deep feeling and a sharp understanding of his time. He revolutionized 20th-century fashion by blending French tradition with bold innovation. At Dior, he introduced the iconic trapeze dress. Later, with his own House, Saint Laurent broke boundaries and redefined femininity. He also transformed fashion through ready-to-wear, artistic collaborations, and culturally inspired haute couture.

His designs symbolized liberation and modernity. Yet his life was marked by struggle, brilliance, and Parisian elegance. Saint Laurent’s influence endures. He shaped fashion as an expression of identity, rebellion, and sophistication. Above all, he showed that authenticity is the most important lesson for any true artist. He remains a living inspiration.

IRK: Looking back, how has the relationship between photographers and fashion houses evolved? What changed after Monsieur Yves Saint Laurent’s era? How did Tom Ford and later Hedi Slimane transform that relationship? Chiefly, what do you think has been gained, and what may have been lost, in this artistic exchange? “Every time I create a collection, I find my childhood again, I commune with it.”

Iris Brosch: With designers like Tom Ford and Hedi Slimane, Yves Saint Laurent’s personal artistry gave way to global marketing. Creativity became measured by impact, visibility, and sales. Images began to feel interchangeable.

YSL was different. First, he respected women. He did not simply sell them dresses. Hence, his designs made women appear strong and powerful. Yet they could still seem fragile, sensitive, and deeply human. They seemed to honor the grace and presence of his mother. As he once said, “Every time I create a collection, I find my childhood again, I commune with it.” That intimacy and personal connection to creation are increasingly rare today. They remind us of fashion’s true soul.

---

Yves Saint Laurent Website