New York – “There is no possible elegance without perfume,” said Gabrielle Chanel, creator of the iconic Chanel no. 5, which this year celebrates its centenary, a perfume that Marilyn Monroe declared unconditional and whose French actress Marion is today Cotillard image.
When the protagonist of “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” answered a journalist’s question about what she used to sleep on, Marilyn Monroe answered with a mischievous gesture: “A few drops of Chanel no. 5.” From there, the perfume, created by Ernest Beaux in 1921, was classified as mythical for more reasons than its composition.
That and that years later became the first perfume to enter a museum – part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Contemporary Art in New York (MOMA) – says a lot about the genius of its creator.
Cristina de Catalina, development director of the Perfume Academy Foundation, defined Coco Chanel as “a visionary and daring creator who revolutionized her time”, during the cycle of virtual conferences organized by the Perfume Academy about mythical characters in the history of perfume.
Before his time
Gabrielle Chanel said “there is no possible elegance without perfume. It is the perfect accessory that cannot be seen, that is not forgotten, the most important ”.
Rocío Capel, Training Director at Chanel Iberia, pointed out that the French designer was the first seamstress to create her own perfume, which she described as “visionary, who believed that perfume could express its style” and that she knew how to interpret fashion. . through him, an “unusual” project for that time.
He met the perfumer of the countries, Ernest Beaux, in 1920 and came to accumulate it for the French “maison”, the best way to maintain the exclusivity of the formula, as he later continued to do with the other “noses” that created fragrances from the company such as Henri Robert, Jacques Polge – the one who created the most perfumes for the house – or the last to join, his son Olivier.
Chanel gave very clear guidelines for the creation of no. 5, so that he is not a prisoner of his time, to have timeless and abstract notes, that he was not subject to the trend, although he gave a “huge” creative freedom. the perfumer, who at that time was investigating aldehydes, facilitators of the durability of the aroma.
“A perfume that no one had made before”, that was the maxim, confirms Capel, a perfume with multiple and contradictory facets, a luxurious and seductive perfume for women.
Fresh and without ornaments
A different essence, with exceptional raw materials, with, unlike those of the time of a single floral note, a floral bouquet that includes more than 80 ingredients, presented in a simple bottle, without ornaments, close to the laboratory and incorporating a pearl thread on her neck, “to prevent the evaporation of her perfume.”
The name of this century-old perfume holds a mystery. We have to do – explains Capel – the fact that Ernest Beaux proposed to the designers several series, all with a number, and the one he decided was number 5, although it is really “unknown” if he was the one pleasant or relied on other factors.
“Five were Gabrielle Chanel’s luck,” Capel said. He related it to his astrological sign, the fifth of the zodiac, with the five fingers of the hand, with the five tips of a star, also with the five goods of happiness, the five senses, the five aromas – although now there are six-.
A superstition that led to his performances, his collection always ran the fifth, on the ceiling of one of the rooms of his house, where he wore a glass lamp with the “C” logo, the G of his name and the name have were braided.number five.
There are five so far
Coincidentally, so far, there have been five reinterpretations no. 5 and it happens that this year, its centenary, 2021, will add up to five.
Coco Chanel always claimed that with this name she moved away from the pomposity of perfume names at the time, it was also easy to remember, it did not have to be translated and “its importance remained in it”.
However, despite her confidence in her potential, Chanel – a breakthrough in this regard as well – did not hesitate to use advertising to promote her and she herself starred in a campaign in 1937 in the American magazine Harpper’s Bazaar in the United States. , the place where he triumphed for the first time, displaying a sophisticated image of a confident woman.
Nicole Kidman, the best
But if one campaign stands out for Rocío Capel, this is the one with Nicole Kidman, directed by Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge), which brings together the three pillars of the company: high fashion design, jewelry and perfume.
“An image of unity, seduction and boldness”, in line with the spirit of Chanel, for a perfume that “has surpassed time and fashion without ceasing to fascinate”, concludes Capel.