A boozy scent that’s as big and boisterous
as its namesake, Rhinoceros announces its presence with an arrestingly terpy
opening of elemi whose lemon-citrus notes dovetail with bergamot and a herbal
accord of lavender/sage/armoise. Detectable even in the top is the elaborate
blend of nearly a dozen different musks (c.15%) and this complexity is further
expressed with one of the most convincing liquor notes I’ve come across. The
official pyramid lists rum, but to me the richly textured accord - alcoholic,
woody, leathery, smoky – reads closer to whisky, at least initially. As
the perfume dries down, the dried-fruit facets of the oakwood extract do become
clearer, as does a honeyed sweetness that links to deep, woody amber fond.
A straight fig fragrance (meaning sundry Stemone type green notes over coconut lactones and a sweet coumarin/tonka, musky base) of no particular merit or distinction.
Je Suis un Homme is a take on the masculine herbal-citrus genre, aspiring to such classics as Guerlain’s Derby.
From under the toppy citrus notes develops a dry herbal accord that has a lightly burnt quality. Patchouli, labdanum and musks meanwhile, make up the fond.
It’s winter 2016/17: Britain is negotiating its exit from the EU; Trump has been elected President of the USA; and Penhaligon’s has just released its ‘Portrait Series’ – a set of six fragrances inspired by the ‘British aristocracy’. Housed in eye-catching bottles each topped with a gold, hunting-trophy head, they carry names such as 'The Tragedy of Lord George' and 'The Coveted Duchess Rose'.
In another age, it might have been the price that was cause for comment: £178 for 75mL is, as they say, ‘aspirational’. But we’re largely inured now to sticker shock, hardened by the likes of Roja Dove, Xerjoff and Henry Jacques.
Instead, what’s noteworthy about this line is how far it departs, designwise, from Penhaligon’s standard and how well this resonates with the prevailing ‘populist’ (nationalist-xenophobic, really) mood that is currently sweeping much of Europe and North America.
Just like the Portrait series, which is said to represent the ‘English spirit’, right-wing populism employs a nativist rhetoric, favouring monoculturalism over pluralistic cosmpolitanism. And just as the copywriter for Penhaligon’s campaign freely interchanges British with English, populist narratives aren’t too concerned with the granular.
They, the authors of populist propaganda, are constantly making appeals to a mythical, ‘pure’ past; a time before mass immigration, a time, in fact, very much like the one represented by the Portraits who are all reassuringly Anglo-Saxon.
Where Penhaligon’s have previously looked beyond the shores of our tiny islands, finding inspiration in Egypt (Oud de Nil, 2016) and Iraq (Ninevah, 2015), the Anglocentrism of the new range is easily read as reflecting the inward focus of nationalist ideology. And if this seems like a stretch, consider that the next release from Pen’s is ‘Savoy Steam’ – an homage to London’s old Savoy steam baths.
As a counter-reaction to the creeping liberalism of the past fifty years, this political movement represented by Farage, Le Pen, Wilders et al. argues for a turning away from Post-materialist values and an embracing of ‘traditional’ ones. And who better to represent English/British traditionalism than its nobility whose singular distinction is its vast material capital?
Whether this strategy by Penhaligon’s pays off remains to be seen. Whilst capturing the Zeitgeist, the marketing campaign appears targeted at an affluent, youthful sector whose first encounter with Fitzgerald was likely Baz Luhrmann’s successful adaptation of Gatsby in 2013. It is precisely this demographic who, studies show, are least likely to vote for Trump and Brexit and therefore identify with the line. One thing we can be certain of though, is that Sales will be keeping a very close eye on the figures, praying the effort doesn’t backfire as it did in the case of the gloriously misjudged Tralala (2014), which is now, unsurprisingly, discontinued.
From an orange blossomy opening that has a
pronounced, metallic-green aldehydic facet, Noël au Balcon quickly turns into a
near dupe of L’Artisan Parfumeur’s Tea for Two (Olivia Giacobetti, 2000) – all
transparent honey, cinnamic spices and amber offset by some bitter, black
tea-like nuances.
A white floriental from the Tom Ford era,
Gucci’s eponymous EdP segues imperceptibly from orange blossom to almost
tuberose with wintergreen salicylate and tart green apple inflections before
settling into a long-lasting powdery, sweet oriental base.
The opening is marked by a cuminic contrast
that I find myself wishing would hold out longer against a certain aldehydic
soapiness. The dirty/clean dialogue however, is engaging and Daniela Andrier’s
composition is a standout in both Gucci’s and her back catalogue.
One of the most talked about fragrance
campaigns of 2016 was by the Framework agency for Kenzo’s World. Directed by
Spike Jonze and featuring an all acting, all dancing Margaret Qualley, the
highly engaging spot drew praise and quizzical looks in seemingly equal
measures.
As noted by Richard Vine in his piece for
The Guardian (21/08/2016 link), Jonze’s film is but the latest example of a collaboration between
an indie director and a fine fragrance house: David Lynch and Sofia Coppola
having previously shot for Dior; Wes Anderson for Prada. At just shy of four
minutes in length, the advert moves apace thanks to the frenetic,
dancehall-inspired track by Ape Drums and Sam Spiegel (who just so happens to
be Jonze’s brother) which accompanies it.
For all its vaunted rejection of the
clichés associated with perfume adverts, Kenzo World’s narrative draws on one
of the most enduring and widespread messages targeted at women: liberation.
From junk food to high fashion, females are over and again sold a fantasy of freedom
and escape which assumes the form of a moral imperative.
The short film opens with a scene from a black
tie gala event. Seated at a table adorned with bright pink flowers representing
a stereotyped image of femininity is Qualley, her youth and emerald green dress
conspicuous in the stiff, formal surrounds. From the unseen stage drones, Peanuts-style, a man’s incomprehensible speech.
With a feigned smile, Qualley excuses
herself and walks dejected and pensive from the hall through the wide, empty spaces
of the Los Angeles Music Centre’s Dorothy Chandler pavilion. Rubbing her neck
in a classic self-touch gesture that’s long been a staple of perfume
advertising, Qualley’s eyes suddenly focus and come alive. Then, like someone
possessed of an outside force, her pupils begin to dart rhythmically, her face
contorts and her limbs flail uncontrollably.
(Qualley vs. Walken)
Reprising the role of Christopher Walken in
Fatboy Slim’s Weapon of Choice video (also directed by Jonze), Qualley proceeds
to dance her way energetically up the mirrored staircases, through the
mezzanine levels and onto the stage in an empty auditorium. Her movements,
choreographed by Ryan Heffington, reference everything from pre-war Vaudeville
steps through Star Wars, Fifth Element and Black Swan. With each lunge and arcing
high kick, Qualley’s power increases till it assumes a supernatural dimension.
A lone, unsuspecting man on his telephone is thus felled Matrix-style while the
walls are pock-marked by laser shots fired from her fingers.
(like a boy ft. Qualley, Ciara)
Bursting forth from the building, Qualley grand jetés across a deserted courtyard,
clearing invisible hurdles till at last she arrives before a giant, floating
eye composed of flowers. With arms raised in reverence, she experiences a final
throw of ecstasy before launching herself head-first through the ocular icon,
landing in a starter’s block position amid a shower of blossoms that are most
definitely not pink. Spent, Qualley
yet rises again, beating her chest to the thump of a snare.
The all-seeing eye motif, captured too by
the perfume’s flacon, was a major imprint of Kenzo’s 2013 fall-winter
collection and, according to the brand’s art directors Humberto Leon and Carol
Lim “alludes to the force of the third eye and to spiritual protection from
above”. Before this supernatural symbol, Qualley figures as a modern day πύϑια
– those high priestesses in the temple of Apollo at Delphi consulted as
oracles. Like her, the Pythia too 'raved' in apparent trance (at least according to some accounts), the exertion leaving them ‘like a runner after a race or a dancer after an ecstatic
dance’. And like the priests who were charged with translating the Oracles’ enigmatic
prophesies, we the audience must struggle to decode Qualley’s message.
As arguably the most powerful female
figures in the classical Greek world, the Pythia provide a compelling model of strength
and sagacity. This image of femininity targeted at a culturally literate group
is far removed from the typical presentations found in perfume advertising (cf.
Paco Rabanne’s Olympéa) while also avoiding the #GirlBoss banality to which
pop-feminism has been reduced.
On the face of it then, Kenzo World launched with a successful campaign. 2016 Q4 sales reports however, will ultimately tell if the big advertising budget
was worth it for a so-so smelling fragrance (Francis Kurkdjian) that has
comparably limited distribution.
