Fashion Friday // Jardin Marjorelle
#FashionFriday // Bit of a different one today Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé’s Jardin Marjorelle in Marrakesh. Yves born in Algeria, first visited Morocco with Bergé in 1966, bought a home in the and returned frequently. In 1974 they discovered the gardens, originally owned by Jacques Marjorelle a french artist who landscaped it in 1930, fell in love immediately bought a villa opposite and as neighbours became regular visitors. At that time it was located in the countryside, they felt so privileged because the gardens didn’t have many visitors. Pierre described it as having and incredible charm.
In 1980, the gardens were to be destroyed to make way for property development, YSL and PB took the decision to purchase it immediately. They kept the gardens open to the public, as the Marjorelle family had done after Jacques passed away, and began restoration work within the gardens and painting the studio that JM had built there. This studio is now a Berber museum, along with the mYSLm (museum YSL Marrakesh) very close by that was opened around 2016, and the gardens this is a major attraction and popular please to visit, situated on what is now Rue Yves Saint Laurent.
The gardens are a peaceful enclave filled with rare cacti, bright bougainvillea, giant palms that make a shady area along the red pathways which bring you to peaceful fountains and ponds. The colours throughout make the garden otherworldly, the brilliance of the cobalt Blue buildings, yellow and the same blue plant pots, the deep red floors, blue and green tiles all make this place unforgettable.
Inspiring a use of colour in his work, Morocco was a creative haven, where Yves produced 100s of sketches then returning to Paris to complete his collections “Marrakech became not only a holiday place but was a big inspiration for Yves Saint Laurent in terms of fabrics and colours. He was only using black and white before in his design.”
Both Yves and Pierre thought of the revival of the gardens as one of their greatest achievements, now with 700,000 visitors annually.
📷 1: The Jardin Majorelle, from The Telegraph
📷 2: Yves in Morocco
📷 3-8: My own photos of the gardens, October 2015. Take me back!
📷 9&11: Unknown photographers on Flickr via Pinterest
