Guerlain takes sculpting approach to fragrance

February 9, 2022

Musc Outreblanc, which is derived primarily from musk, is the newest addition to Guerlain’s L’Art & La Matière collection. Image credit: Guerlain

By Nora Howe

French beauty house Guerlain has introduced the newest addition to its L’Art & La Matière collection, Musc Outreblanc, with an exploration of the natural world.

Through a series of static and dynamic imagery, the brand dives into the inspiration behind the fragrance and how it came to fruition. To further celebrate the new fragrance, Guerlain tapped sculptor Anne Lopez to create a series of Musc Outreblanc-inspired stucco plates embellished with 22-carat gold leaf.

The art of smell
As part of its campaign promoting Musc Outreblanc, the brand sat down with Guerlain perfumer Delphine Jelk to discusses her process behind creating these signature fragrances.

“I sculpted the fragrance to preserve the very clean facets of musk, while maintaining their unique texture,” Ms. Jelk says in a new video.

Her creative approach is like that of sculpting marble, unveiling the fragrance like a statue.

The heart of the perfume contains floral notes of jasmine and orange blossom, while the base features white amber.

Guerlain perfumer Delphine Jelk approaches fragrance like marble

To emphasize the use of raw, natural ingredients to create memorable fragrances, Guerlain also published a short film highlighting the perfume’s origins: Tunisia.

In Nabeul, Tunisia, pure neroli was harvested by local pickers, sorted and distilled all within a 24-hour period to preserve its character before being added to Musc Outreblanc’s composition.

In the “Art of Raw” video, Guerlain unveils that it takes 1,000 kilograms of flowers to produce one kilogram of essence, or 1,000 blooms for one drop of fragrance.

With Musc Outreblanc and Néroli Outrenoir, Guerlain offers two contrasting interpretations of the orange blossom essential oil. Musc Outreblanc blends notes of musk to reveal the brightness of neroli, while Néroli Outrenoir utilizes smoked tea.

Crafted by Pochet du Courval, Guerlain’s glassmaker since 1853, each L’Art & La Matière bottle uses 15 percent recycled glass and can be personalized with a collection of cap plates and engraved messages in a range of materials and colors.

To celebrate the arrival of Musc Outreblanc, Guerlain tapped Parisian sculptor Anne Lopez to bring the fragrance to life through a limited-edition collection of 500 hand-made plates for the bottle’s caps.

Ms. Lopez specializes in designing and producing works that blend drawing and raw materials

In her design, Ms. Lopez sculpted blooming flowers out of white stucco in precise detail, adding gold leaf as embellishments.

“Musc Outreblanc is a perfume that evokes both the fragility of a flower and its hidden power,” Ms. Lopez says in a video interview with Guerlain. “It’s interesting to compare to the sculptor's art with that of the perfumer who enhances the musk and an artist who can enhance the raw material.”

Guerlain’s world
From campaigns to philanthropic initiatives, the LVMH-owned brand has always been dedicated to preserving the natural world and highlighting how its products reflect natural materials.

In July 2021, Guerlain shared the thought and care that goes into crafting its renowned products in a behind-the-scenes series, “Soul of Craft.”

In the series, artisans and perfumers illuminate the thoughts behind the natural ingredients and crafting of Guerlain’s signature scents (see story).

In a sustainability effort, the brand teamed with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in launching a state-of-the-art female beekeeping entrepreneurship program called “Women for Bees.”

Over the next five years, 50 participants will learn the basic tenets of beekeeping, including how to run a professional apiary, and by the end of the training, participants will have acquired all protocols necessary to allow them to sustain bee colonies and become fully professional beekeeper-entrepreneurs and an international network of female beekeepers (see story).

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