ÇaFleureBon Profiles in American Perfumery: Shawn Maher of Chatillon Lux + St. Louis Roots Draw

©2018 Ooh St. Lou Studios Shawn Maher of Chantillon Lux

Profile: The seeds for my infatuation with the olfactory world were planted in my childhood. I was born in Arkansas and grew up in the Ozark Mountains in Missouri. In addition to all the time spent outdoors while growing up, my dad works at a lumberyard and would always have me smell the fresh wood shavings, especially red cedar when I would visit. Between that and the flower gardens that my mom planted annually, you can see how I grew to love woody, earthy and floral fragrances. Not even that, but I even found weird smells to be fascinating, like gasoline, a freshly opened package of baseball cards, cardboard and who knows what else.

Shawn Maher of Chantillon Lux as a young boy

However, my mom is from Saint Louis and I always loved visiting the city with its rich history, beautiful old buildings and plucky charm. Finally, after college I moved to my home away from home for good and just keep loving Saint Louis more and more, enthralled with both the history and the amazing artists who do bold and daring work. There’s been a huge grassroots movement to reinvigorate the city, and the pride that people take in their communities makes it an exciting place to live. And when you see people pouring every ounce of their being into what they love (against all odds sometimes), it inspires you to do the same.

Chatillon Lux Lamplight Penance – Inspired by the final years of the life of frontier Hero Henri Chatillon

Once I began experimenting with perfumery, I felt like something in my brain unlocked. As a musician, the creative process of composing perfume felt an awful like process of composing a song, down to how you have infinite possibilities in how you tell the story, allowing your unique voice to really shine. In both forms of expression, arranging a few notes in perfect harmony can place seemingly ordinary parts in harmony to evoke so much beauty that it is breathtaking. It is no wonder that the art of perfumery sprung forth from religion. While I still love music, I have found an even deeper creative satisfaction in scent. There is a precision there that goes beyond what I love about music and amplifies it, with even the most minute detail affecting the overall composition immensely.

Composing a new formula on the work bench with the Saint Louis flag as a backdrop

On Being an American Perfumer: As an American perfumer, I find that many of us feel less bound to a history and tradition in our work and so you see many of us finding their own voices in a wholly unique way. There is a sort of vibe with so many niche perfumers that reminds me of many DIY and independent bands whose dedication to independence and doing ALL of the work themselves leads to a greater ability to create the music that they truly wanted to create through their entire career. Like many American cities, Saint Louis, formerly the Gateway to the West, has had to reinvent itself multiple times. We have had our struggles, but we also have seen many people in our history whose greatest mission in life was to realize their unique vision and make the world a more beautiful place. Many American perfumers strike a resemblance to many American cities: we strive to reach a goal by blazing our own trails to get there. It is both bold and fearless.

Miles Davis(Antibes Juan-les-Pins 1963

Favorite American Artist: One of the most inspiring American artists to me was someone who also grew up in the area and got his start in Saint Louis: Miles Davis. As a musician, I admire his compositions and technical ability, but as an artist I admire his unyielding pursuit of his vision and unwavering commitment to never becoming stagnant, but rather continually daring to reinvent himself. My next launch in my Parfums line, Nefertiti, is a tribute to both his seminal post-bop album and the famously beautiful and wise Queen Nefertiti.

circa 1966 via amazon.com

Nefertiti is a remarkable album not only because it turned so many jazz traditions on their head, it also was so distinctly Miles without having composed a single track of himself, instead taking on the role of bandleader. He inspired greatness and allowed up-and-coming musicians to stand on the shoulder of this jazz giant to achieve greatness. Many of the songs seek to create a mood rather than impress with musicianship (in the raw recording of the song Nefertiti, you can hear Miles exclaim, “No solos!”), which often forced the band members to find new heights of creativity through unconventional voicings and arrangements. It is something that I often strive to do in perfumery: take the familiar and revisit it with a new perspective. It’s like the feeling of jamais vu, when you suddenly are shaken to experience something familiar as if this is your first time seeing it. When I first heard Nefertiti, I felt like I was hearing jazz for the first time.

Shawn Maher of Chatillon Lux, Perfumer and Owner

In the fall foliage in Benton Park – named after Thomas Benton Hart

Thanks to Shawn Maher of Chatillon Lux we have a draw for your choice of a full bottle of your choice of Lamplight Penance or Santal Auster, plus three samples of your choice from the Chatillon Lux Parfums line of eau de toilettes. To be eligible you must be a registered reader(register here) in the USA, you must be registered or your comment will not count. Tell us what you found fascinating about Shawn Maher of Chatillon Lux path to perfumery and which Chatillon Lux perfume you would like to win and which Eau de Toilette samples. Draw closes 12/25/2018

Please like CaFleurebon Profiles in American Perfumery and your entry will count twice. Please leave that in your comment.

Shawn Maher of Chatillon Lux is our 139th American perfumer in our series, which began in 2011 with Dawn Spencer Hurwitz of DSH Perfumes.

All photos belong to Shawn Maher of Chatillon Lux unless otherwise noted.

Follow us on Instagram @cafleurebon and @chatillonlux

Santal Auster at the Jewel Box in Forest Park – the largest urban park in America

Editor’s Note: Shawn Maher of Chatillon Lux Santal Auster is one of our  editor's favorites of the year. Reviews of Shawn Maher of Chatillon Lux fragrances coming soon.

We announce the winners on our site and our Facebook page so like Cafleurebon and use our blog feed…or your dream prize will be just spilled perfume.

 

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17 comments

  • BostonScentGuy says:

    I really enjoyed his comparison between songwriting and making scents–finding the right way to tell the story. That's a wonderful way of putting it! I also enjoyed knowing how his childhood scent frame of reference (woods) inspired notes he uses often! Thank you for this draw. If I won I'd love a bottle of Santal Auster and samples of Bon Vivant, Sylva, and Unconditional Surrender. I'm in the US!

  • I really enjoyed reading about Shawn’s background as a musician and how that plays into his work with fragrance. I also found that his love for the City of St. Louis mirrors that of a couple of dear friends of mine who have made this quintessentially American city their adopted home.

  • Thanks for this great article! I liked how Shawn was able to tie and express his passion for music and perfumery. This is my favorite- ‘As a musician, the creative process of composing perfume felt an awful like process of composing a song, down to how you have infinite possibilities in how you tell the story, allowing your unique voice to really shine. In both forms of expression, arranging a few notes in perfect harmony can place seemingly ordinary parts in harmony to evoke so much beauty that it is breathtaking.’ If I’m picked, I’d like a full bottle of Santal Austere and EDT samples of Unconditional Surrender, Gratiot League Square and Rose Santal. I already liked CaFleurebon Profiles in American Perfumery. Thanks for this opportunity. – California, USA

  • Music and his creative process within his perfume blend well together. His love for St Louis is apparent. This is a great new brand for me. If lucky: Lamplight Penance. Samples: Rose Santal, Omnostre, Bon Vivant. I liked CaFleureBon Profiles in American Perfumery. USA

  • I’m pleased someone else recalls fondly the smell of a fresh opened pack of baseball cards. If picked the Lamplight Penances & samples of Unconditional Surrender, Lavande Poivre, Sylva. usa

  • This was a really nice reading. Great article, the association of music with perfume was always a perfect blend. I would love to try Lamplight Penance (nice name), and also for samples : rose santal, bon vivant and unconditional surrender. Thanks for the chance, Oakland USA.

  • Another Arkansan – awesome! What I found most fascinating about Shawn’s path to perfumery was really how his childhood (and the smells of his childhood) shaped his curiosity. I’ll never forget the smell of cutting firewood with my dad and pouring gasoline into our tractor on cold winter days. The Chatillon Lux perfume that I would like to win is Lamplight Penance – the three EDTs I would choose are Taum Sauk, Eau de Treget and Bon Vivant. Arkansas, USA

  • Shawn make awesome products. They are top of the line everything he makes.
    Plus his customer service is 2nd to none.
    He is informative on his products and will answer any questions you have.

  • Lamplight penace sounded the most interesting to me ! Shawn’s experiance seems to be connected with travel and movement. I love this and hope for that to come through the fragrance. I too feel that cities have a feel and almost spirit each of their own. I like how these reviews are detailed and personal.

    Lamplight penace would be my choice and the samples would be unconditional surrender, omnostre, bon vivant .

    Thank you again and I am happy for this perfumer getting attention !

  • doowtnehpets says:

    It’s nice to see influence through music turn into perfumery. Never heard of Sean or his fragrances before, but they all sound great. If I were to win I’d go with Santal Auster for the bottle and the 3 samples… Unconditional Surrender, Sylva and Omnostre.

  • Enjoyed this read and his story of being a musician and his love for perfumery. Haven’t tried any of his fragrances. I’d like to choose Santal Auster for the bottle and Omnostre, Bon Vivant and Rose Santal.
    Thanks, California

  • I’m not surprise that musicians in perfumery. I surmise that there are many musiciansin perfumery, but they are better known by their olfactory compositions and not auditory contributions. All our senses can experience and express in harmony, dissonance, blends etc. This happens in food, music, dance, visual arts, and scents. So perfumery and music is a natural progression for Shawn Maher as is it for Quentin Bisch who is a singer. If I win I select Santal Auster–it has an animalic quality lacking for my collection. And Bon Vivant, Sylva, and Lavande Poivre. Thanks California

  • I am a past musician and I would love to puck Chatillon Lux Lamplight Penance. The the 3 samples… EDT samples of Unconditional Surrender, Gratiot League Square, Rose Santal. Merry Christmas! I am in CA USA

  • I love the stories that address typed to the scents. I would love Santa Auster, and as for the samples, le Foret, omnostre, and Bon Vivant. Tho the ambergris note of lamplight penance does souks intriguing… Thank you for the lovely profile, and the very generous draw! I’m in the us

  • This profile has made me want to visit Saint Louis. I can’t get there now so I’ll have to watch “Meet Me in Saint Louis” for the millionth time. Also, I was inspired to listen to Nefertiti–I haven’t listened to that in years. That’s exciting Shawn is creating a perfume based on this seminal work of art.
    I’d choose Lamplight Penance and the samples I would choose are Lavande Poivre, Omnostre, Gratiot League Square.
    I live in the USA.

  • I was probably most interested in the influence of “weird” smells. I happen to like unconventional notes in fragrances. I mean, Fahrenheit is one of the biggest men’s fragrances ever and it has that gorgeous petrol opening.
    If I win, I’d like the bottle of Lamplight Penance. For the samples, I’d like the Yuzu/Rose/Patchouli, Rose Santal, and Lavande Poivre

    Im in the US. thanks for the draw

  • I loved how how Shawn was able to tie and express his passion for music and perfumery. I would love to win a bottle of Santal Auster and samples of Bon Vivant, Sylva, and Unconditional Surrender. I also loved this…’As a musician, the creative process of composing perfume felt an awful like process of composing a song,…’