iconic perfumes: 35 posts

I’m delighted to bring back my newsletter! Here you’ll find reflections and stories I don’t publish anywhere else—behind-the-scenes notes, sensory explorations, and previews of projects as they take shape. As a welcome gift, I’ve prepared a short guide to the art of cologne: it includes a simple accord you can recreate at home, along with a carefully chosen selection of remarkable colognes to discover. Subscribe here.

This autumn, I am launching a new seminar, Fragrances that Influenced History—a journey through perfumes that not only shaped how we smell, but also how we understand art, fashion, and society. These are the first two parts of a longer seminar, each one hour in length, designed to introduce you to the milestones of modern perfumery. The class is interactive and its size is kept small to ensure that everyone can participate comfortably.

Fragrances That Influenced History

Location: Online, Zoom (recording available)

Date & Time: 1h

Fragrances That Influenced History Part 1 September 20th, Saturday 1:00pm-2:00pm EST/6:00pm-7:00pm CET   SOLD OUT 

Fragrances That Influenced History Part 2 September 28th, Sunday 1:00pm-2:00pm EST/6:00pm-7:00pm CET   SOLD OUT 

Part I: The Dawn of Modern Perfumery
We will begin with the late 19th and early 20th centuries—the moment when modern perfumery was born. You will discover Coty’s La Rose Jacqueminot and Guerlain’s Jicky, perfumes that marked the transition from traditional essences to a new, modern aesthetic. We will discuss how synthetic materials transformed perfume creation, and how these innovations paralleled the bold experimentation in visual arts and literature. You will learn what accords are still used today and how niche perfumery continues to be inspired by the legendary perfumes of the 19th and early 20th century

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“What makes a perfume beautiful?” I pose a question to Maurice Roucel knowing fully well that it is a complicated question to answer. Roucel is a perfumer with more than 40 years of experience in creating exquisite perfumes, such as Hermès 24 Faubourg, Donna Karan Be Delicious, Frédéric Malle Dans Tes Bras, and Serge Lutens Iris Silver Mist, and he’s devoted much effort to promoting the notion of perfumer as an artist, rather than a mere “nose.” “We use our imagination and our brains more than noses,” he says.

Perfumery as an intangible art can be hard to champion. Although scents are related to the intangible cultural heritage protected by UNESCO such as cuisine and certain arts, they don’t benefit from the recognition or documentation. (The Osmothèque, a scent archive based in Versailles, is the main institution studying and preserving the historical fragrances today.) Perfume is generally seen as too subjective to define or even describe, which makes definitions of artistic worth complicated.

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Whenever I browse the list of perfume best sellers, regardless of the geographic market, I’m always struck by the enduring presence of classics. Chanel No 5 rarely gives up its position in the top five, while perfumes like Guerlain Shalimar, Clinique Aromatics Elixir, and Aramis keep their place in the top twenty. What can explain the lasting appeal of these icons, especially today when every season brings more and more new creations?

For the author of Perfume: A Century of Scents, Lizzie Ostrom, the answer lies partly in this avalanche of new launches.  “Classic scents are lodestars. When you’re feeling overwhelmed by new launches, it’s often just easier to go for the ones you recognize, like ignoring fashion fads and saving up for a Yves Saint Laurent Le Smoking instead,” she says. Perfumes like Chanel No 19 or Lancôme Magie Noire convey different moods and experiences, but they also have a reputation. (Incidentally, neither No 19 nor Magie Noire is a top seller for their brands, but their following is fiercely loyal.)

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Beautiful fragrances can lift your mood. Over the past few months I have been wearing my most opulent perfumes without being concerned that they might become associated with a dark period in my life. I needed colors, texture, and vibrancy, and my beloved classics satisfied me. Complex fragrances have the benefit of being multifaceted, so that each time you wear them, you discover a new layer or create your own story to match the mood. Perfume may be a dispensable luxury, but like all beautiful things, it serves to elicit positive emotions and boost the spirits.

For my summer-themed selection, I’ve settled on a list of five masterpieces. These are the perfume equivalents of novels by Tolstoy and George Eliot because of their layers, nuances, and twists. Some are elegant colognes; others are lush florals and bittersweet chypres (mossy-woody blends.) The list is personal, but I think that you will agree that these are among the classical perfumes to try. Some of them might be ideal as an introduction to classics.

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“The art of fortunate proportions” is how Edmond Roudnitska described perfumery. According to the legendary perfumer, a good fragrance has balance and an original form, a simple idea that is far from easy to realize. Roudnitska spent his career creating fragrances that exemplify perfumery at its most artistic—Christian Dior Diorissimo, Eau Sauvage, Diorella, and Rochas Femme. His compositions have elegance and character, but one of the distinctive trademarks of Roudnitska’s style is balance.

When I speak of balance in perfumery, I mean both the aesthetics and the technique. Consider Guerlain’s Chamade, one of the most perfectly balanced fragrances. From the bright green top notes to the rose and hyacinth heart and the velvety woody notes, the perfume unfolds like a silk scroll.  Similarly modulated is Dior’s Diorissimo, where the musky and spicy notes balance out the floral and green accords.

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