Bottega Veneta unveils Parco Palladiano fragrance collection
Although we may not all be able to experience the vast cultural heritage and lush landscapes of Italy, except probably as a vacation now and then, Italian fashion label Bottega Veneta says it has bottled the experience into the Parco Palladiano fragrance collection. Bottega Veneta aims to convey the pure sense and spirit of the Veneto region in Italy, and especially the scents from the garden of its famed Palladian villas, with its new unisex fragrance collection.
The result of over two years work, the Parco Palladiano collection is numbered by simple Roman numerals – I, II, III, IV, V, VI – to reflect the classical heritage of the Palladian villas. Just like everything created by Bottega Veneta, the Parco Palladiano collection expresses the maison’s four cornerstones: fine quality materials, artisanal craftsmanship, contemporary functionality, timeless yet innovative design.
“Palladio is a source of endless inspiration for me in many ways”, says Tomas Maier, who conceived and oversaw the collection. “My father was an architect who studied the work of Palladio, so his teachings have always been part of my life even before I started as creative director at Bottega Veneta. Palladio was an artisan as well as an architect who sought balance and harmony in everything. The Palladian gardens that inspire this ‘Parco Palladiano’ collection represent a perfection on earth and an agricultural utopia”.
Priced at $296 for a 100ml bottle, the whole collection will come in the form of six scents, each with different ingredient or aroma for the region. These include magnolia, cypress leaves, sun-ripened pear, azalea flowers, aromatic herbs (laurel, rosemary, sage), and, the queen of flowers, rose. These scents were developed from two years of testing and concocting various experiences and moments from the gardens. Maier called on three perfumers for this: Michel Almairac and Daniela Andrier, who have already worked with Bottega Veneta, and Alexis Dadier, who works with the brand for the first time.
Michel Almairac has been a part of the Bottega Veneta fragrance story from the beginning, creating the debut signature women’s fragrance Bottega Veneta. He has continued his relationship with Bottega Veneta, also developing Eau Legère and Essence Aromatique.
Daniela Andrier has provided the women’s fragrance Knot as well as collaborated on the first men’s fragrances Bottega Veneta Pour Homme and Pour Homme Extrême.
Alexis Dadier is creating his first fragrances for Bottega Veneta with the Parco Palladiano project. “Tomas Maier is very inspiring to work with,” says Alexis, “because he has a very clear story in his mind about the world he wants to create with the fragrance.”
I am fascinated by their work. With the Parco Palladiano collection, they have created fragrances that extend and tell a new story about the Bottega Veneta world.
Thomas Maier
PARCO PALLADIANO I
This fragrance evokes the early moment at the beginning of the day, when the sun begins to shine on a garden that is still dew-covered, immaculate. “For this scent, I immersed myself in that marvellous orderly world of the Venetian villas, creating a fragrance just as I experience the gardens,” says perfumer Michel Almairac.
The most noble and refined tree of the gardens is the magnolia, and this fragrance captures not just the flower but the full sensory experience of sitting under the magnolia tree: the woodiness of the bark, the cool shade of the leathery leaves, the strong sweetness of the petals.
PARCO PALLADIANO II
“The cypress tree is emblematic of the Venetian landscape, its slender shape a link between Palladian architecture and nature. This scent has all the vitality of spring, very green and fresh,” says Alexis Dadier.
The vertical scent of cypress leaves unfolds with a dual personality: a deep and dark green hand-in-hand with a stimulating bright freshness, further contrasted with the sharpness of pink pepper.
PARCO PALLADIANO III
This scent recreates a moment in fall, passing by a pear tree in a garden’s orchard, the pears nearly overripe and ready for harvest, falling from the branches into the green grass.
The warmth of the sun-ripened pear is heightened by an infusion of fresh mint leaves. “It is an imaginary promenade where the seasons overlap like a labyrinth,” says Daniela Andrier, “and memories of gardens in bloom mingle with those of our childhood.”
PARCO PALLADIANO IV
“In the afternoon, the clouds of azaleas that cover the ground outside a Palladian villa are magical. I wanted to capture the sense of a garden in summer as the scent rises in the sunlight,” says Alexis Dadier.
The colourful azalea flower, rarely used in perfumery, spreads its smooth and solar perfume while an undertone of velvet chestnut brings texture to the fragrance revealing a luxurious landscape.
PARCO PALLADIANO V
This fragrance, created by Daniela Andrier, conjures up a walk towards the aromatic herb gardens near a villa. As the sunlight hits the gardens, the tree path provides brief shadow and adds to the scent of this perfect mid-afternoon moment.
Woody, slightly spicy, the aromatic breeze combines the crispness of laurel with sturdy rosemary and soft sage leaves. “My intention was to bring the elegance of these gardens to life, and also their imperfections, to render them even more romantic”, says Andrier
PARCO PALLADIANO VI
The sixth fragrance, created by Michel Almairac in collaboration with Mylène Alran, centers on a sensual rose that has been in the sun all day long, tasty, spicy, almost ripe.
“The rose is the most elegant of flowers,” says Mylène Alran. “It is the most elegant, the most intense.” The opulent rose bridges the gap between building and nature as it is picked and brought inside the villa for evening, its intensity combining with the warm woodiness of the furnishings.
THE FLACONS
Each bottle of Parco Palladiano reflects the traditions of Bottega Veneta and the Veneto region, with the house’s iconic intrecciato at the heart of the design.
Intrecciato is the instantly recognisable signature of Bottega Veneta, the distinctive leather weave design developed and handcrafted by the house’s artisans. It was by focusing on the intrecciato that Tomas Maier started the revival of the Bottega Veneta, celebrating the extraordinary expertise that remains at its core today.
Bottega Veneta’s motto ‘When your own initials are enough’ expresses a philosophy of individuality and confidence, while reflecting the discreet and sophisticated aesthetic of the intrecciato signature design. Intrecciato shows Italian craftsmanship at its highest level and reveals Bottega Veneta’s understated luxury rooted in the quality of materials and artisanal tradition from the Veneto region.
For the Parco Palladiano collection, intrecciato appears all over the flacon, cap and the packaging. The flacon itself is inspired by classic Venetian glasswork, an aesthetic that defines the Bottega Veneta fragrance house.
THE ITALIAN WORLD OF FRAGRANCE FROM BOTTEGA VENETA
The fragrances of Bottega Veneta tell the stories of quintessential Italian experiences. From the first scent, creative director Tomas Maier wanted to bring meaning to fragrance, evoking through scent specific Italian moments, capturing the timeless beauty and heritage of the land.
With each new creation a story begins, conjuring to life a distinct aspect of Italy, from the landscape and environment to the life lived in it. The approach is unique in fragrance, typical of the Bottega Veneta commitment to forging its own path.
We have a natural evolution in everything we do at Bottega Veneta, and with fragrances it comes through the stories that we tell through scent. We started out with women’s fragrance, then we moved to men’s. Now we have Parco Palladiano, and with them all we create a world, one that will always work together.
Thomas Maier
With the release of these scents, Bottega Veneta has done well to honor the region that they’ve been a part of since the brand was founded in 1966. The six bottles in the collection will be sold exclusively in Bottega Veneta boutiques.
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Agra, Taj Mahal (Click photo to enlarge)
Chopard Casmir Eau de Parfum (Click photo to enlarge).
Chopard Casmir Eau de Parfum (Click photo to enlarge).
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