tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post7868134568629486088..comments2024-03-21T00:17:37.281-07:00Comments on sherapop's salon de parfum: Perfumes of Geography: What's in a Place Name?Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-90496895680819712062012-10-17T09:49:32.383-07:002012-10-17T09:49:32.383-07:00Ha--that's a good one, pitbull friend! That is...Ha--that's a good one, pitbull friend! That is a polarizing perfume, isn't it? (-;sherapophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14116821928196122529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-18650891237409615222012-10-16T22:36:38.924-07:002012-10-16T22:36:38.924-07:00As far as I'm concerned, there actually is an ...As far as I'm concerned, there actually is an "eau de unwashed street person," which I avoid strenuously. It's called Muscs Koublai Khan!;>)pitbull friendhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18426744107243600553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-2507055065992184512012-10-15T16:12:11.740-07:002012-10-15T16:12:11.740-07:00Hello, pitbull friend! Very nice to read you aroun...Hello, pitbull friend! Very nice to read you around these parts.<br /><br />I agree with you that cities do sometimes have distinct scents, certainly parts of them do, but what makes them distinct, it seems to me, lies in the nose of the beholder, so to speak. <br /><br />The distinct quality of a city which we may visit once while on vacation, for example, may forge a permanent memory trace in our mind because, to us, it is unique. To the people of that place, it may not be perceived at all, because it is processed as background noise.<br /><br />Consider the literal noise level in New York city. To someone from suburbia or parts even more rural, it can be impossible to sleep in a NYC hotel room situated lower than the fourth floor, because the street noise is so incredibly loud and it runs late and starts up again very early. But I am sure that to a New Yorker who lives in a second-floor apartment, it becomes "normal" and so is not even processed as noise. How else could they get any sleep? Of course, there are always ear plugs, but I surmise that many seasoned New Yorkers tune out the noise naturally.<br /><br />The same thing holds, I believe, for scent. When I poke fun at the stinkiness of NYC, it is from my perspective as an inhabitant of a place much less stinky (in my estimation), and someone who specifically grew up in a land-locked state with vast open spaces and endless fresh air. So I think that our judgment of distinct scents of places has every bit as much, if not more, to do with facts about us as it does about facts about the place!<br /><br />Can't say that I'd be plunking down a chunk of change for eau de "unwashed street person", but your point is well taken! Demeter did have a great idea and it is absolutely applicable to city microcosms and phenomena, it seems to me!<br /><br />Thank you so much for stopping by, pitbull friend!sherapophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14116821928196122529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-64193810827099881132012-10-14T16:22:30.850-07:002012-10-14T16:22:30.850-07:00You know, I DO think there are interesting aspects...You know, I DO think there are interesting aspects of city odors, but I don't believe they appear in perfumes. I'd love to have something with oranges and bus exhaust to remind me of my long ago trip to Tel Aviv! (Yes, I am an addict of some pretty odd scents, like SMN Nostalgia, with its whoosh of kerosene.) I've read a number of books about African cities that mention a distinctive scent of woodsmoke and various native flora. <br /><br />I'd love a well-done Demeter-esque depiction of some New York neighborhoods - Midtown in the Rain, for instance, being cold cement dust, a waft of Starbucks, a hint of unwashed street person, and a bit of pretzel cart. (Demeter did try to do a New York Xmas one, but their roasted chestnut note was sickeningly off.) It's a GREAT concept, except that the names seem only to connect to some vague, romantic idea of a handful of major cities. Give me, instead, Tashkent Winter! Give me Chiang Mai with a hint of durian!pitbull friendhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18426744107243600553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-37486217129350081612012-10-09T19:50:03.224-07:002012-10-09T19:50:03.224-07:00Is it true that the Slumberhouse perfume names are...Is it true that the Slumberhouse perfume names are surds? I thought that they derived from some obscure Nordic dialect spoken only by twelve cold people. lolsherapophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14116821928196122529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-68587891464882558532012-10-09T09:10:46.324-07:002012-10-09T09:10:46.324-07:00Point well taken! I tend to bring them up because ...Point well taken! I tend to bring them up because they are the only available examples, and I feel that they are taken far too seriously by many perfumistas--for example, the ones who got me banned from Creednotes for what were taken to be my shameless acts of desecration of The Holey[sic] Book!sherapophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14116821928196122529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-87218116253334073292012-10-09T08:58:59.738-07:002012-10-09T08:58:59.738-07:00Slumberhouse chooses the opposite rationale when i...Slumberhouse chooses the opposite rationale when it comes to name giving: their fragrances have senseless names so that the wearer approaches them without preconceptions. Of course they are not the only or first doing this but I think I like this approach. <br /><br />I will have to disagree with you and Bryan on one thing though: Burr and Turin are as influential as their influence on us. By referencing them, even as an antithetical source, every time the subject of art comes up in the context of perfume, only proves that they are shrewd business men. I think it is time to find new experts on the field, ones we can reference positively :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-82083612150256046622012-10-08T14:13:33.900-07:002012-10-08T14:13:33.900-07:00I agree with you, Christos: a city name is way too...I agree with you, Christos: a city name is way too vast and vague. Even worse are the Dueto bottles covered with a smattering of city names. At some point, if everything is included, then nothing is included, and it ceases to have any meaning whatsoever.<br /><br />That is also great example: CK zero or CK anti-one or CK negative-one. <br /><br />All of this leads me to wonder about the "perfume is art" thesis all over again. Bryan Ross wrote something yesterday at From Pyrgos which is really insightful. Here's the link:<br />http://frompyrgos.blogspot.com/2012/10/perfume-as-artifice.html <br /><br /><br />The odd thing about Chandler Burr is that he has a great deal of experience with the business end of perfumery. I have not read that book (The Perfect Scent) yet, but I will, and the question is: how can he believe that perfumers who work for the companies who put out such monstrosities as the CK One flanker series are artists? They are hired noses, doing a very specific job, with specific requirements (budget, concept), and according to the desires of the client. At the end of the day, if the nose is to be paid, he or she must deliver what the client has asked for. So where is the artist in all of this supposed to be?<br /><br />I suppose that one could reply that the parameters are quite narrow, but the artist works within those parameters. I wonder whether that is what Burr means... So, if you're given a list of requirements which must be fulfilled (a budget, a concept, etc.), then there are still plenty of creative choices to be made. But how, again, is that different from building an omelette versus a souffle out of eggs? And doesn't that imply that “everyone's an artist,” a thesis as vacuous as the marketing concept of “all cities”?sherapophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14116821928196122529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-70532193368176220602012-10-08T12:33:56.616-07:002012-10-08T12:33:56.616-07:00Thank you so much, Anonymous. Is that you, Joseph?...Thank you so much, Anonymous. Is that you, Joseph? (-;sherapophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14116821928196122529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-49619257769566708732012-10-08T11:38:55.632-07:002012-10-08T11:38:55.632-07:00I think it all comes down to the way perfumes reac...I think it all comes down to the way perfumes reach their audience. In the past choosing a fragrance was an experience that required the physical presence of the perfume. Today most of the customers are approached by advertising. In the case of niche fragrances the name of a perfume must be able to form a a full image. How many flowers are there to reference? Most of them have been done. So it is logical to resort to places because the putative buyer has either visited them or has a wish to visit them based on his expectations. So the imagery is already there. One already has expectations from the perfume without knowing anything more than the name. The case of Bond No9 is more genuine I think because their names refer to micro-environments. For instance I have no idea of what to expect of Union Square in terms of smell. I find this more "artistic" than "Tokyo" or "Moscow". <br /><br />Mass marketed flankers are a lot more vague in their nomenclature because no one really pays attention to the name. A striking example is CK one Shock series which could have been easily named CK zero or CK anti-one or CK minus one. These names seem a lot more suitable as they are totally contradictory to the idea of CK one.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2106815346229702986.post-21453159143476806572012-10-07T10:13:47.828-07:002012-10-07T10:13:47.828-07:00So thoughtful as usual, Shera!
So thoughtful as usual, Shera!<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com