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Perfume Launches

Fragrance Launch: Etat Libre d’Orange’s The Afternoon of a Faun

Beauty, Dance, Music, Art, History, and Perfume came together  last night at the Museum of Art and Design in a comprehensive exploration of the creative process behind Etat Libre d’Orange’s newest fragrance, The Afternoon of a Faun.

The presentation began with a live performance by Etat Libre’s muse, singer/performance artist Mx. Justin Vivian Bond. Mx. Bond was outfitted in a seafoam tie-dyed tunic, ecru reflective-satin pants encasing impossibly long legs, metallic strappy sky-high wedges, the most artfully-sculpted cheekbones I’ve ever seen, and golden, silky Honey West hair. Mx. Bond, who likes to be called V, has a wonderfully throaty, torchy singing style and a quick, dry wit that made for a very entertaining set.

Chandler Burr, the Curator of the Department Of Olfactory Art at MAD, interviewed the team who collaborated on the scent, perfumer Ralf Schwieger, ELdO Creative Director Etienne de Swardt, and the enthusiastic Mx. Bond.

A short film created by Mx. Bond and Mr. Schwieger followed, detailing their two-year journey together to create The Afternoon of a Faun. Influences for the fragrance included Mx. Bond’s impressions of loving being surrounded by nature, sexual experiences, and memories of past scents, as well as interpretations utilizing Debussy’s music, Mallarme’s poem, and Nijinsky’s rare 1912 ballet The Afternoon of a Faun that stunned and outraged the world.

Fragrance Notes: Bergamot, Pepper, Cinnamon, Incense, Rose, Immortelle, Orris Root, Jasmine, Myrrh, Moss, Leather and Benzoin.

Photographs by Hernando Courtright