Interview with Christopher Brosius of CB I Hate Perfume + Synesthesia Draw

 

Photo:Courtesy Christopher Brosius

If you are a certain age and lived in New York City in the late 90s, you might remember that Demeter, which was co-founded by Christopher Brosius, was sold at Henri Bendel (their display was right next to Jean LaPorte for L'Artisan Parfumeur).The concept was radical -perfume that smelled like Dirt and Rubber? Demeter Snow and Sugar Cane won two Fragrance Foundation awards for Best Fragrance in "Nouveau Niche" -2000 and 2001 respectively (taking their place in FiFi history alongside more 'conventional' perfumes such as Dior Dune, Narciso Rodriguez 'For Her' and Calvin Klein Eternity). 

 After I interviewed Christopher Brosius in 2008  I wanted to know more about  one of the world's most creative and outspoken perfumers. I wanted to follow up on some of his answers, thought of questions I hadn't asked  and hoped for another opportunity.   

You were raised on a farm in rural Pennsylvania, what was your childhood like and when did you realize you had an olfactory gift?

 

My Life as a Dog (Swedish: Mitt liv som hund) is a 1985 Swedish drama film directed by Lasse Hallström, based on a novel by Reidar Jönsson

CB: Have you ever seen Lasse Halstrom’s “My Life As a Dog”? My childhood was very much like the small Swedish town in that film but in English.

I realized I had an olfactory gift during a conversation with Michael Edwards shortly after I won my first two Fragrance Foundation Awards in 2000.

 

Did your mother wear perfume?

CB: No. She had a few very old bottles of Prince Matchabelli perfumes on her dresser but never wore them. Women didn’t wear perfume were I came from – I suppose it was considered a vanity. or cheap – I’m not sure. My aunt was the exception. But she was an Avon Lady and wearing perfume was part of the job so she did. And she wore a LOT of it. My siblings and I knew instantly that she was in the house or had been there when we came home from school. This was very exciting.

 

Let’s look at the future; what will the olfactive landscape look like in five years.

CB: You know I really could care less. I focus on my own work and what interests me and what interests my clients. I do certainly hope the olfactory landscape of the future is a good deal less boring and offensive than it is now…

 

It must get tedious when every interviewer asks you why you hate perfume. So what do you love about perfume?

CB: I love how perfume can make people feel. I love to see how people can react to it and what they have to say about it. I love that this is such an individual experience and can never perceived by two people in just the same way. That’s magical to me.

 

Being a city girl I don’t remember ever smelling a dandelion Yet, I am quite convinced that I am a Dandelion is part of my memories, not yours. I was hoping you can explain this?

 CB: All olfactory perception is always and absolutely correct. There’s no arguing with what people experience when they smell something. But this always speaks far more of the person smelling than it does of what they smell.

 

In the late 90s and early 2000s Williamsburg, Brooklyn was a place for emerging artists. Is that why you opened your studio there?

 

CB: I never had the intention of opening a shop here. It just happened. But I am looking to move out of this neighborhood as soon as possible.

 

Painting: Kadinsky Synestheisa

When did you realize you were a synaesthetic. Can you explain what that means and how it affects the way you create fragrance.

CB: Synesthesia happens when one type of sensory input is interpreted simultaneously by one or more of the other senses. This can be a very strange experience. I realized I was synesthetic in 2005 or 2006 when I read Richard Cytowic’s “The Man Who Tasted Shapes”. Prior to that I had no idea that not everyone else perceived the world in just the same way. But the book also said this is a common experience among synesthetic people. We don’t realize there is anything unusual about how our brains work. I have frequently used part of my synesthesia while I’m composing perfume though all along. I often know when a perfume is done because it assumes the “correct” shape, color, texture and sometimes sound.

 

I once read a statement where you said men don’t wear fragrance as well as women, and Americans either wear the wrong fragrance or too much of it. Do you still believe this to be true?

CB: They’re learning. Over the past several years, it’s largely been men who are the most offensive with their fragrance in public. But then they’re going through the same process now that women were going through during the 80’s and 90’s. Suddenly wearing fragrance is something men think they should do but they have no clue how to do it. So they’re learning.

 

 Should a fragrance smell good to be considered Art.

 CB: “It’s not what man knows but what he feels that concerns art. All else is science.”- Bernard Berenson

 

What is a water pefume and how does it differ from your absolutes.

 CB: Alcohol is the traditional vehicle for perfume. it’s cheap and it’s easy. But it’s not terribly good for the perfume or the skin so I’ve stopped using it. The skin needs oil and water to hold a scent. My absolutes are a concentrated oil-based version similar to classic perfumes – these are used in small quantities very specifically. The water perfumes are a spray version of the same scent but a lighter concentration suitable for wearing over larger areas. Strangely both last about the same time when worn. Water perfumes are very complicated and rather expensive to make but I think they work much better – certainly for my perfumes.

 Cumming (and Second Cumming) for actor Alan Cumming raised the bar for celebrity scents…totally original, all profits went to charity  and very much an expression of Alan Cumming. Is there anyone else you would consider creating a fragrance for?

 CB: I hadn’t really thought about it. But I wouldn’t want to make a perfume for anyone I wouldn’t want to have dinner with fairly often.

 

As the creator of In the Library, do you own a kindle or use an iPad to read books?

 CB: I have a huge library and buy books all the time. But I also have been reading voraciously on my iPad. I don’t see digital files replacing the printed page but I do think the two will begin to evolve more independently. And I would never give up printed books. I would never do without the feel or the smell of them. And I have yet to read a printed book that ran out of battery power halfway through…

 

American Gods is a Hugo and Nebula Award-winning novel celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.

What are you reading now?

CB: A Brief History of Time  by Stephen Hawking & American Gods  by Neil Gaiman

On your website you say that people who smell like everyone else “disgust you”. Certain fragrances that are appalling on me are heaven on a friend. Don't we have a unique fragrance print?

 CB: There are a good many perfumes that are engineered to smell as exactly alike as possible on everyone who wears them – no matter what their makers may say. Yes I find that disgusting. As for a unique fragrance print, that for me is splitting hairs. As far as I’m concerned, all people are unique.

 What natural ingredient do you find the most difficult to work with?

 CB: Absolutes and CO2 & SCO2 extracts are usually the most difficult. Finding just the right method to dissolve and prepare them is very, very tricky. It’s a matter of the right solvent in the right proportions and when certain standard solvents are automatically rejected for various reasons, it can be very very difficult to find ways to render solid materials into a liquid state. This can drive me and my chief assistant – who has a degree in organic chemistry – absolutely mad.

 You admire Jean Claude Ellena and Hermes, is there any other perfumes that smells good these days?

 CB: I’ve always like the Hermes perfumes and I like those from Serge Lutens. I also tend to like the perfumes that Jean LaPorte himself has created.

 

Your latest fragrance 7 Billion Hearts isn't like any vanilla perfume I have ever smelled.  What inspired it?

 CB: That perfume was actually inspired by a whiff I had several years ago of an original bottle of Shalimar which dated back to the early 20’s. it was gorgeous and I thought well this is how a vanilla perfume should smell.

 Favorite restaurant in Brooklyn?

 CB: I am growing very fond of Café Colette which opened a couple of years ago. It’s very close to my studio and the food is usually very well prepared. Usually though when I am going out to dinner, it is to the houses of friends or to restaurants in Manhattan.

 

Jean Paul Gaultier  Fall 2012

Favorite Fashion Designer?

 CB: I like Rick Owens and Kris Van Assche a lot. And I find Gareth Pugh fascinating. But I absolutely love to see what M Gaultier is doing next. He is the end of fashion.

 

When I first interviewed you in 2008, you mentioned “it was high time you did something else”, do you still feel that way?

 CB: Yes it is. And I am. This is going to be a very exciting year. I was just about to begin back in 2008 but then we had the “global financial crisis” and I thought it might be more prudent to conserve resources and postpone what was not immediately essential. I came through that period very well and am now again ready to begin some new things.

 –Michelyn Camen, Editor In Chief

For a draw we are offering 2ml each of CB I Hate Perfume CB/405 "Where we are there is no here" and CB #205 7 Billion Hearts to one commenter please leave your favorite quote(s) from the interview . Draw closes Wednesday April 4, 2012

 

We announce draw winners only on site and on our Facebook page, so Like Cafleurebon and use our RSS option…or your dream prize will be just spilt perfume

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

× 2 = 6

58 comments

  • This is my favorite quote: “As far as I’m concerned, all people are unique.”

  • “I love how perfume can make people feel. I love to see how people can react to it and what they have to say about it. I love that this is such an individual experience and can never perceived by two people in just the same way. That’s magical to me.”

    Love this quote…

  • Barbara S says:

    “That perfume was actually inspired by a whiff I had several years ago of an original bottle of Shalimar which dated back to the early 20’s. it was gorgeous and I thought well this is how a vanilla perfume should smell”. I love Shalimar and now want to smell an old bottle—-

    very good read.

  • “Have you ever seen Lasse Halstrom’s “My Life As a Dog”? My childhood was very much like the small Swedish town in that film but in English.” haha charming!

  • cheesegan says:

    For a draw we are offering 2ml each of CB I Hate Perfume CB/405 “Where we are there is no here” and CB #205 7 Billion Hearts to one commenter please leave your favorite quote(s). Draw closes Wednesday April 4, 2012

    My favorite quotes from this article are:

    “I love how perfume can make people feel. I love to see how people can react to it and what they have to say about it. I love that this is such an individual experience and can never perceived by two people in just the same way. That’s magical to me.”

    and in regards to perfume being considered an art:

    “It’s not what man knows but what he feels that concerns art. All else is science.”- Bernard Berenson

  • The whiff of 20s Shalimar…” well, that’s one of my favourites and so I’m desperately jealous of people who’ve smelled this. And happy I can more easily access 7 Billion Hearts.

    I liked the observation on how men wear too much cologne, and that they’re learning, like women did 20 years ago. I actually take a liberal hand with the smelly things, but tone it down when I know I’ll be going out, as a courtesy to those with environmental sensitivities. But I have to tell you, I love finding myself walking behind a man who’s smelling particularly good!

  • Maryevans says:

    Great interview and yes very different from others I have read
    One of my favorite quotes is
    I often know when a perfume is done because it assumes the correct shape color texture and sometimes sound

    The quote about his aunt , the Avon lady was also enjoyable .

  • Love this quote, as I find myself in the exact same situation 🙂

    CB: I have a huge library and buy books all the time. But I also have been reading voraciously on my iPad. I don’t see digital files replacing the printed page but I do think the two will begin to evolve more independently. And I would never give up printed books. I would never do without the feel or the smell of them. And I have yet to read a printed book that ran out of battery power halfway through…

    Thanks for the draw!

  • “And I would never give up printed books. I would never do without the feel or the smell of them.”
    and
    “I often know when a perfume is done because it assumes the “correct” shape, color, texture and sometimes sound.”

  • “it can be very very difficult to find ways to render solid materials into a liquid state. This can drive me and my chief assistant – who has a degree in organic chemistry – absolutely mad.” That’s really funny 🙂

  • great concept….7 billion hearts, all beating as once…vanilla, also, to many people…is a way to collectively memory the childhood happiness, xo and i think that i would love to have a whiff of the shalimar 1920’s, and would be truly inspired from that, as well. good luck w the launch, and best of luck….xoxoxo sounds like a fun future of creative lies in front of you, always good to keep things fresh and interesting. If you send the winner a dab of the perfume, would u also send a dab of that 1920 inspiration as well??? wink wnk, nudge nudge….xo Libby

  • My favorite thing about this interview might be that in the picture Mr. Brosius looks like he’s wearing a modern kilt! But, this was a great, enjoyable interview, so these quotes are a close second:

    showing my nerdy side:
    “I don’t see digital files replacing the printed page but I do think the two will begin to evolve more independently. And I would never give up printed books. I would never do without the feel or the smell of them. And I have yet to read a printed book that ran out of battery power halfway through…”

    And, I loved both the answer and the question:

    “It must get tedious when every interviewer asks you why you hate perfume. So what do you love about perfume?

    CB: I love how perfume can make people feel. I love to see how people can react to it and what they have to say about it. I love that this is such an individual experience and can never perceived by two people in just the same way. That’s magical to me.”

    also, regarding synesthesia (me too! except for the part where I don’t compose, I only enjoy):

    ” I realized I was synesthetic in 2005 or 2006 when I read Richard Cytowic’s “The Man Who Tasted Shapes”. Prior to that I had no idea that not everyone else perceived the world in just the same way. But the book also said this is a common experience among synesthetic people. We don’t realize there is anything unusual about how our brains work. I have frequently used part of my synesthesia while I’m composing perfume though all along. I often know when a perfume is done because it assumes the “correct” shape, color, texture and sometimes sound.”

  • My favorite quote from the article was his quote about books…..I have a huge library and buy books all the time. But I also have been reading voraciously on my iPad. I don’t see digital files replacing the printed page but I do think the two will begin to evolve more independently. And I would never give up printed books. I would never do without the feel or the smell of them. And I have yet to read a printed book that ran out of battery power halfway through… such a true statement 🙂

  • It seems to me Mr Brosius is going into a fashion
    venture!
    One of the most educational parts of the interview is the explanation of a water perfume vs conventional alcohol
    “I absolutely love what M Gaultier is doing next.He is the end of fashion”
    Good luck to Mr. Brosius on his creative endeavors in 2012

  • Thank you for interviewing Mr. Brosius, one of my favorites! I am bookmarking this interview; it is so well done!

    I enjoyed the question and Mr. Brosius’ answer about the printed page vs. the Kindle. I feel the same way myself so it was nice to read:
    “I would never give up printed books. I would never do without the feel or the smell of them.”

    Also, I’m so glad he was asked about the difference between the water perfumes and absolutes, something I wondered about.

    My favorite quote of the interview?
    “But I wouldn’t want to make a perfume for anyone I wouldn’t want to have dinner with fairly often.”

    That was a fun interview to read. Thanks and thanks for the great draw!

  • My favorite: “There’s no arguing with what people experience when they smell something. But this always speaks far more of the person smelling than it does of what they smell.”

  • “There are a good many perfumes that are engineered to smell as exactly alike as possible on everyone who wears them – no matter what their makers may say. Yes I find that disgusting.”

  • “I wouldn’t want to make a perfume for anyone I wouldn’t want to have dinner with fairly often”. Hahaha. His standards are difficult to reach! I like genuinely difficult people

  • my favourite quote in this unique interview with maverick perfumer C.B would be “But I wouldn’t want to make a perfume for anyone I wouldn’t want to have dinner with fairly often.” It kind of defines his personna

  • I like this quote…

    “I love that this (perfume) is such an individual experience and can never perceived by two people in just the same way. That’s magical to me”.

    Thanks for the draw.

  • My favorite quote is”Have you ever seen Lasse Halstrom’s “My Life As a Dog”? My childhood was very much like the small Swedish town in that film but in English. ” what a lovely way to grow up!!!!
    Thank you for the draw!!!!!

  • I found interesting his comment about personal fragrance interpretation:

    “All olfactory perception is always and absolutely correct. There’s no arguing with what people experience when they smell something. But this always speaks far more of the person smelling than it does of what they smell.”

    Great read! Thank you.

  • Carly McKay says:

    Mine is..”There are a good many perfumes that are engineered to smell as exactly alike as possible on everyone who wears them – no matter what their makers may say. Yes I find that disgusting. As for a unique fragrance print, that for me is splitting hairs. As far as I’m concerned, all people are unique.”
    So very true!

  • I was very intrested in his coment on synaesthesia and the way it serves him
    ” I often know when a perfume is done because it assumes the “correct” shape, color, texture and sometimes sound.”
    beautiful interview- thanks a lot

  • As a fellow reader (who has read both American Gods and A Brief History of Time) I loved this: And I would never give up printed books. I would never do without the feel or the smell of them. And I have yet to read a printed book that ran out of battery power halfway through…

  • I always love reading interviews with Christopher Brosius.
    My favorite quote is:
    “That perfume was actually inspired by a whiff I had several years ago of an original bottle of Shalimar which dated back to the early 20’s. it was gorgeous and I thought well this is how a vanilla perfume should smell.”

  • “it can be very very difficult to find ways to render solid materials into a liquid state. This can drive me and my chief assistant – who has a degree in organic chemistry – absolutely mad.”

    This makes me feel so much better about some of my failed attempts at working with absolutes!

  • I found the whole discussion on synesthesia extremely interesting, and his declaration of, “I often know when a perfume is done because it assumes the “correct” shape, color, texture and sometimes sound.” How fantastic is that?! Great interview.

  • I thought this was really interesting (I see Sujaan right above me picked the same quote!): ” I often know when a perfume is done because it assumes the ‘correct’ shape, color, texture and sometimes sound.” I think people with good noses and the ability to write well about perfume often have some synaesthesia.

  • Another wonderful interview, thank you so much for sharing this with us:-). I think what really caught my attention perfume wise was this quote ‘That perfume was actually inspired by a whiff I had several years ago of an original bottle of Shalimar which dated back to the early 20’s. it was gorgeous and I thought well this is how a vanilla perfume should smell.’ 7 bill. hearts=must try.
    Thank you for interview and draw.

  • My favorite quote is the one about the inspiration for 7 Billion Hearts. I would really like to try it because I love Shalimar. Also, my favorite book is American Gods by Neil Gaiman so it was a pleasant surprise to see it mentioned here.

  • My favourite quote is “I do certainly hope the olfactory landscape of the future is a good deal less boring and offensive than it is now…”

    I’m sure a lot of people on here share his sentiments about this!

  • “There are a good many perfumes that are engineered to smell as exactly alike as possible on everyone who wears them – no matter what their makers may say. Yes I find that disgusting. As for a unique fragrance print, that for me is splitting hairs. As far as I’m concerned, all people are unique”

    I couldn’t agree more…

  • Obviously, “I love how perfume can make people feel.”, never forget this!!!!
    Don’t know that CB is a synaesthesic, such an awesome gift!

  • Obviously, “I love how perfume can make people feel.”, never forget this!!!!
    Don’t know that CB is a synaesthesic, such an awesome gift!

  • My favorite quote (very quotable!!!!):

    “All olfactory perception is always and absolutely correct. There’s no arguing with what people experience when they smell something. But this always speaks far more of the person smelling than it does of what they smell.”

    Thank you!

  • Kamajasmine says:

    Great interview
    Pretty much everything is quotable both questions and answers
    ” i realized i had an olfactory gift during a conversation with Michael Edwards shortly after I won my first two Fragrance Foundation Awards in 2000″
    That must have been quite an experience

  • Tami Holubar says:

    Thanks for the draw! Favorite quote…” I wouldn’t want to make a perfume for someone I wouldn’t go out to dinner with fairly often.”

  • I loved this: But I wouldn’t want to make a perfume for anyone I wouldn’t want to have dinner with fairly often.

  • My favorite quote was about his childhood resembling “My life as a dog”! Also it was interesting to learn more about water perfumes.
    I would love to try 7Billion Hearts, thanks for the draw!

  • Favorite quote: And I would never give up printed books. I would never do without the feel or the smell of them.
    Totally agree!

  • Though there are many quotes that were great (and a few made me giggle!), my favorite one was:

    “I would not make perfume for anyone I would not want to have dinner with often!” AWESOME!!

    Thanks for the draw AND the great interview. Love how CB thinks “outside” the box…heck, he smashed the box and burned it! 😉

  • Okay, there are many that I love, but this has to be the favorite: “As far as I’m concerned, all people are unique.” Not only do I love that quote, I kind of want it on a poster now.

    I haven’t tried either of those fragrances, and I’ve been wanting to. Thanks for doing the draw!

  • “I wouldn’t want to make a perfume for anyone I wouldn’t want to have dinner with fairly often.” The best artists are the ones whose motives one can trust.

  • TimeaZsofia says:

    My favoritie quote is:
    “I have a huge library and buy books all the time. But I also have been reading voraciously on my iPad. I don’t see digital files replacing the printed page but I do think the two will begin to evolve more independently. And I would never give up printed books. I would never do without the feel or the smell of them.”
    The same as I feel! 🙂
    Thank you for the drow!

  • Perfume is such a personal item, I love this quote:
    “There are a good many perfumes that are engineered to smell as exactly alike as possible on everyone who wears them – no matter what their makers may say. Yes I find that disgusting.”

  • “But I am looking to move out of this neighborhood as soon as possible.”

    I’m so glad I spent my early 20s living in Greenpoint, the neighborhood north of Williamsburg, and I am so glad I left by my late 20s. Mr. Brosius seems to understand that North Brooklyn is a passionate lover who must be lost to gain its nostalgic, sepia-colored patina.

  • “And I would never give up printed books. I would never do without the feel or the smell of them. And I have yet to read a printed book that ran out of battery power halfway through”…and also “All olfactory perception is always and absolutely correct. There’s no arguing with what people experience when they smell something. But this always speaks far more of the person smelling than it does of what they smell.”
    I could quote the entire interview an especially entertaining and intelligent one.
    Bravo Mr. Brosius!

  • My favorite quote: “All olfactory perception is always and absolutely correct. There’s no arguing with what people experience when they smell something. But this always speaks far more of the person smelling than it does of what they smell.”

  • My favorite quote is actually the sentence “…I also tend to like the perfumes that Jean LaPorte himself has created.”

    I moved to NYC in early 1986, and somewhere along the way discovered the ORIGINAL Jean LaPorte perfumerie on Madison Ave. Still in my previous profession and not even aware of “the industry”, I instinctively knew this was special. This sentence immediately transported me back to that store, and the scents (like the original Vanilla and mens “Navigateur”) that are etched in my brain. Thank you for the memory!

  • “All olfactory perception is always and absolutely correct. There’s no arguing with what people experience when they smell something. But this always speaks far more of the person smelling than it does of what they smell.”

  • “I would never give up printed books. I would never do without the feel or the smell of them. And I have yet to read a printed book that ran out of battery power halfway through…”
    “I love how perfume can make people feel. I love to see how people can react to it and what they have to say about it. I love that this is such an individual experience and can never perceived by two people in just the same way. That’s magical to me.”

  • I love what he says about books’ batteries not running out, but this quote also stood out: “But I wouldn’t want to make a perfume for anyone I wouldn’t want to have dinner with fairly often.” This seems like a fine measure on whether or not to do something for/with a person in many contexts!

  • My favorite quote: “I love that this is such an individual experience and can never perceived by two people in just the same way. That’s magical to me.” This is one of the things I love about perfume, too. Magical, indeed.

  • TexasDamsel says:

    I am fascinated by the phenomenon of synesthesia. In CB’s words,”synesthesia happens when one type of sensory input is interpreted simultaneously by one or more of the other senses…. I realized I was synesthetic in 2005 or 2006 when I read Richard Cytowic’s “The Man Who Tasted Shapes”. Prior to that I had no idea that not everyone else perceived the world in just the same way….I often know when a perfume is done because it assumes the “correct” shape, color, texture and sometimes sound.” Talk about the creator putting his experiences into a fragrance! Amazing.