{"id":16836,"date":"2023-04-04T08:04:01","date_gmt":"2023-04-04T08:04:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/georgina-rodriguez-refutes-media-claims-about-her-childrens-schooling-in-saudi-arabia\/"},"modified":"2023-04-04T08:04:01","modified_gmt":"2023-04-04T08:04:01","slug":"georgina-rodriguez-refutes-media-claims-about-her-childrens-schooling-in-saudi-arabia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/?p=16836","title":{"rendered":"Georgina Rodriguez refutes media claims about her children\u2019s schooling in Saudi Arabia"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Guerlain\u2019s master perfumer Thierry Wasser on why the Gulf is a constant source of inspiration<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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\nDUBAI: Guerlain\u2019s master perfumer Thierry Wasser is no ordinary man.<\/p>\n
\nThe nose behind some of the maison\u2019s most iconic fragrances, Wasser joined Guerlain in 2008 to fill the shoes of his predecessor, Jean-Paul Guerlain. This made him the fifth-ever perfumer in the house\u2019s history and its first non-family name.<\/p>\n
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\nWasser was recently in Dubai to reveal Guerlain’s latest bee bottle, designed in collaboration with Lebanese designer Nadine Kanso, and he spoke to Arab News about his role at Guerlain and how the Gulf Cooperation Council region continues to inspire him.<\/p>\n
\nThe maison\u2019s latest perfume, Reve d\u2019Amour, housed in a bottle designed by Kanso, is one Wasser described as a festival of white flowers.<\/p>\n
\nHe said: \u201cI also wanted something linked to Nadine, which is the cedar wood \u2013 it\u2019s the emblem of Lebanon.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\nThe Middle East, specifically the GCC region, is important to Wasser. He noted an encounter with an Emirati man 15 years ago, which led to the creation of Santal Royal in a bee bottle designed by artist Tarek Benaoum.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cI created Santal Royal after a conversation with an older gentleman who said, \u2018you European people don\u2019t know how to design a big wow perfume.\u2019 And he explained to me what a fragrance means for an Emirati.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\nGuerlain’s latest bee bottle, designed in collaboration with Lebanese designer Nadine Kanso. (Supplied)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\nFrom that conversation, Wasser learned how some Emirati men rub rose oil on their nose and beard before greeting someone.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cGCC, for me, isn\u2019t only about business but also a source of inspiration. The significance of fragrance here is profound compared to Europe and America,\u201d Wasser added.<\/p>\n
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\nHe pointed out that strength, diffusion, and long-lastingness were very important in the region.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cIn Europe, you put perfume on your skin. Here, very often, it\u2019s on the clothes. And if you learn about the longevity of the composition on clothes versus on the skin, you write your formula rather differently,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\nWasser became a perfumer by chance and revealed that his initial trade was medicinal herbs.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cI got kicked out of school when I was 15 because I found it boring and got a diploma in botany instead,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\nLebanese designer Nadine Kanso. (Supplied)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\nDuring the 1970s, the Swiss national joined Givaudan Perfumery School in Geneva, where he discovered he had a knack for scents.<\/p>\n
\nHe said: \u201cThe head of the school was struck by my ability to describe scents using words \u2013 that was my strong point.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nAfter graduating, he worked in Paris and New York before his appointment at Guerlain. His experience at the maison has been unique compared to his roles at other companies.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cGuerlain is very specific compared to its competition. Since 1828, they manufacture everything they sell \u2013 there are no frozen pizzas in the kitchen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\nThierry Wasser became a perfumer by chance and revealed that his initial trade was medicinal herbs. (Supplied)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\nHe learned the art of manufacturing and sourcing from and with Jean-Paul Guerlain.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cPreviously, I was only designing fragrances. With Guerlain, everything starts from scratch. I spend 35 percent of my time sourcing flowers in the fields,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
\nFrom the Indian state of Tamil Nadu comes jasmine, vetiver, and mimosa while pepper is sourced from Madagascar. With a vertically integrated supply chain, Wasser is often knee-deep in flower fields and knows his suppliers well.<\/p>\n
\nHe said: \u201cJean-Paul Guerlain was sourcing the bergamot from the south of Italy from the same family, which is now in its third generation.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cFragrance is incarnated by the people who pick the flowers and transform them into the oil. So, when I smell a rose from Bulgaria, it has a meaning to me because I know the pickers and transformers. There is an emotional charge to all those different ingredients, and that\u2019s why I think our fragrances are alive,\u201d Wasser added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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