I usually start the process of making an Amouage perfume with a collage. In perfumery, one reference or idea does not guarantee the originality of a creation. A collage, however, if you look historically at Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso or Kurt Schwitters, is the idea that you can force together things that weren’t necessarily meant to go into one another; and that this merger will create a new reality. When I am ready, I share my inspirations with the artists who I feel could merge their universes with the collage: perfumers, painters, musicians, architects, etc.
I like to work with people I believe in and who I have shared affinities with. We exchange ideas and trials in any way possible – through DHL, WhatsApp, Instagram, email, phone calls, etc. and ideas cross-pollinate across the different creative practices. At some point, it naturally feels complete, and we stop. Specifically, for the perfume, it happens when the last trials have not been adding any interesting facet or improving the technical qualities of the formula.