A week or so ago, our class was granted the honour of a private visit with Jean Claude Ellena (a master perfumer in his own right and the in-house exclusive perfumer for Hermes) in his studio in Cabris. We were escorted by our chemistry teacher to the outskirts of the small beautiful village that is about 10 minutes drive up in the hills behind Grasse. M Ellena’s house and studio are of matching modern design, flat-roofed with lots of glass and stone. His studio and lab are separate from the main house and as we entered the space we were impressed by its comfortable and relaxed atmosphere. It is a living space really, with a narrow copper hooded fireplace dividing the room and the outer walls all glass looking out onto a lavender trimmed deck that is fringed with fig trees and shaded by parasol pines. The Mediterranean is visible here and there in the far distance. He took us into a small adjoining room that serves as his lab, where two metal carousels of glass-stoppered bottles filled with raw materials adorn the one table in the centre of the small room. There is a digital scale also and a refrigerator full of the more delicate raw (usually natural) raw materials. This is all. These are all the tools one needs. This is the room where his assistant works, weighing out the formulae he creates. M. Ellena himself works out in the living space at a huge wooden desk away from the smell of the raw materials.
We had a question and answer session with him and he talked about the creative process of this medium as well as showing us some simple accords. It was a wonderful experience and of huge significance for me since it is because of this man and his story that my idea of coming to France to study perfumery crystallized . Jean Claude Ellena is a man driven by his passion. He is an intellectual and an artist- creating delicate beautiful minimalistic perfumes. He decided that he wanted to have creative freedom, to not be controlled by the constructs of pure profit driven consumerism- and so demanded this when he was invited to join Hermes. Now he is sitting pretty- free to create as he likes for one of the most highly respected art/style/creation/ houses in the world.
When I asked him…’what is the most important thing for a student perfumer to know?’
He answered….” Passion “.
I just returned from Paris a few days ago- it was a short trip but one that was very specifically about perfume. We began at the Palais Royale, where we visited the ‘shrine to perfume’- the Serge Luten boutique. It is an oasis of purple calm, beautifully adorned, dimly lit and hosted by a lovely man who spoke just the perfect amount of English to mix with my increasing grasp of French. We smelled as many of the rich and floral, woody, leafy, earthy fragrances as was reasonable and I left wearing two of them placed strategically on little spots of our wrists and arms. We would have many more to try as the day progressed…. I wanted to sample the Silver Iris Mist that I have read so much about- and I was not disappointed. It is vegetal, cool, fresh, calm and full of true orris notes. It has a strong carrot facet that creates this cool wet clay aspect and to me, was the colour grey and an ultra-refined and elegant fragrance. The other I wore was Fleurs de Citronnier…a sweet candied neroli that made me see dappled sunshine and summer dresses with honeyed lemon-aid and parasols. For me, it is so summery, warm and delicious that I would like to wear it in the winter…. What I love the most about Serge Luten is that all the perfumes are for men and/or women. There is no division of him and her- it is about subjective taste and appreciation of perfume itself- without segregation.
A Perfumed Pilgrimage 
