In Memoriam: Sandrine Videault

Ashen Death

I used to think, my friends,
I used to think...
that all things
were marching on this Earth
in their true colors.
Joy was white,
grief was pale,
love was pink and
death was black.
I thought so...

And I passed my days
with my colors laid clear.
With my dreams tidy.
With my poems neatly written.
Because it was thus I saw them.
Or I thought so.

~Menelaus Lountemis (Constantinople 1906 - Athens 1977)

It is with extreme shock that I'm relaying the news of the untimely demise of perfumer Sandrine Videault, whose work and generosity of spirit -above all- I had come to love. Reading the somber email, thanks to the providence of her husband and Nathalie Prichard, left me with the bitter realization (once again) of how perishable we are, how frail. Just when she was about to launch her latest fragrance Magnolia Grandiflora, fate had other plans for her. May the soil that covers her be light, as she shed light to the lives of those she became a part of.

You can read an interview with Sandrine Videault I had conducted some time ago on this page.

Interview with a Perfumer: Sandrine Videault

Hosting an interview with a perfumer is always a bit like drilling into the mind of an artist, garnering small tidbits that allow us a glimpse into the creation process and the conceptualising of images, memories and fantasies that someone articulate in the field of smell can translate into mesmerising voyages to the unknown. Smelling Manoumalia, the latest fragrance from Les Nez, parfums d'Auteurs, had been such a revelation and one of my happiest discoveries of the cusp of the year; and indeed the latest couple of seasons too! Naturally my interest on the creative force behind it had been piqued and I sought out Sandrine Videault, the perfumer ~a beautiful young woman who is a historical reconstitutions expert and one of the last students of legendary Edmond Roudnitska.
Sandrine was ever so gracious in giving me an interview on this scent and assorted matters having to do with perfumery. Therefore, it is with pride and great joy that I present you the little questions-and-answers we exchanged with Sandrine for Perfume Shrine.

PerfumeShrine: As a historian myself, I am especially interested in your historical installations which reprised themes from ancient civilisations (such as the sacred Kyphi from 2002 for the Cairo museum, the Metopion based on the resinous cones Egyptians supposedly put on their heads and The Song of the Senses based on Solomon's text Song of Songs) as well as olfactory projects for art exhibitions. The Greek writer Plutarch has obligingly handed down a recipe for Kyphi, which the guests at the opening of the Perfumes and Cosmetics of Ancient Egypt exhibition were among the first people since the time of the Pharaohs to smell it. A L’Oreal spokeskman described the reconstitution as revealing "hesperidic head-notes" (mint and lemon grass), a "spicy centre-note" (juniper berries and cinnamon) and a "balsamic base-note" (incense and myrrh).
Sandrine, is the challenge in creating those in the accuracy to the historical context or to the artistic interpretation (Fact vs. Art)?

Sandrine: The Kyphi is a historical reconstruction (reconstitution in French) exhibited at the Cairo museum. The Metopion is a historical unguent reconstruction exhibited at Sephora-Champs-Elysées. (The Egyptian cones are a historical interpretation exhibited at Sephora-Champs-Elysées). Egyptian cones can only be a loose interpretation because many Egyptologists say that Egyptian cones are only drawings; their existence is often called into question. As for the Song of Senses based on the Song of Songs, it is an exhibition full of historical olfactory interpretations of the Solomon’s text. With such a text, we are always in interpretations. The difference between olfactory reconstructions and interpretations has to be distinct. You are right: It is not the same work and the challenge is in both. Historical knowledge is required for both exercices. On the one hand, historical knowledge allows to be more scientific. On the other hand, aiming for an interpretation allows one to be more creative.

PerfumeShrine: Based on the above, what would differentiate your own finished project on a given historical subject from another perfumer's on the same subject, assuming you're both relying on the same sources, the same texts, the same artefacts for reference?

Sandrine: It would be the same as for two chefs. The handling, the treatment would make the difference. Moreover, some handlings are written nowhere and it is only the perfumer's "automatics" that would make the difference.

PerfumeShrine: In Manoumalia for Les Nez I was struck by how completely different the scope of the concept is compared to other commercial and niche offerings on the market: Here there is an ethnographical travelogue between an old culture and a westernized technique of fragrance producing. How did the idea come about and how were the two combined in the extraordinary result we smell?

Sandrine: When Wallisians go to ceremonies they wear necklaces and crowns full of flowers (fagraea, tiare, ylang-ylang….). They wear sandalwood powder in the hair. They wear their ancestral perfume the TuiTui everywhere. Their necklaces, crowns, hair, body are full of TuiTui. It is the marriage of all those perfumes I wanted to translate. It is the memory of all those perfumes together that helped me to author Manoumalia. The only fragrance that I forgot on purpose is the hea seed’s scent. It is quite too rancid for the Western world! Moreover, today and since the 50’s, Wallisians add Pompeïa from L. T. Piver (1907) in their ancestral Tuitui. Therefore, I had to make passing references to this floral bouquet in Manoumalia.

PerfumeShrine: That's an amazing piece of information: a L.T.Piver fragrance in an ancient mix! I didn't expect that! So, the heart of Manoumalia is sketched around Fragrea flower. To my nose in Manoumalia this appears as a powdery, rubbery tuberose almost (a passing resemblance to the equally rubbery feel of classic Fracas) with accents of creamy jasmine-like and tiare tones. How is fragrea different than other flowers we associate with the tropics such as gardenia, plumeria and ylang-ylang?

Sandrine: Fragrea is indeed like gardenia, white plumeria, ylang-ylang, tiare, jasmine, tuberose… Fagraea is a White Flower. They all have olfactory common denominators. As for the difference, Fagraea is spicy. In return, are you sure that the rubbery facet is only due to the tuberose facet and not because of the vetiver?

PerfumeShrine: Good point, which brings me to my next question. I felt that in the development of Manoumalia the brilliance of the composition was in interjecting a very earthy, rooty Javanese vetiver accord to contrast with the lush South Seas flowers heart: It elevates the scent above the usual tropical compositions smelling of too much coconut, too much lactonic suntan-lotion and gives it a very natural, very "raw" feel. Is this something that came about through the proximity with the Wallisians? Do they employ scents in such a way?

Sandrine: Yes. It came about through the proximity with Wallisians and it is also due to the fact that I live in New Caledonia, I presume. It is a very “raw” country. The vetiver is in Manoumalia because Wallisians use it in their ancestral Tuitui. I didn’t decide to use the vetiver by myself. It is in their culture, their habits.

PerfumeShrine: What impressed you most from the Wallisian culture regarding fragrance use?
Sandrine: Their olfactory gluttony!

PerfumeShrine: What did you learn that you will be carrying in your future perfumes?
Sandrine: To invest perfumes with more happiness. Perfume is magic. It is sacred, but it also represents a festive mood.

PerfumeShrine: That's a lovely thought! One which we should all embrace more. On another note, there has been an emerging trend towards "green" cosmetics in the last decade and fragrances are following with a growing niche of brands which abandon petrochemical-derived products and phthalates in favour of "cleaner" formulae. For instance, L'artisan Parfumeur has abandonded those ingredients. Olivia Giacobetti has been collaborating with a new line of not only all-naturals, but organic scents, for Honoré des Prés.
What is your own opinion on those developments: do you find them worthwhile/ restrictive/ misleading ?

Sandrine: Stopping using phthalates and some petrochemical-derived products is a real good thing for our health and creativity can follow. As for using only naturals and organic scents, why not! Creativity can exist, but lacks of technique cannnot.

PerfumeShrine: There have been restrictions imposed by IFRA and the European Union on certain ingredients' levels in fine fragrance, such as oakmoss, bergaptene, limonene, birch tar and possibly opoponax and frankincense as well in the very near future. This has many perfume wearers worrying that their favorites are getting altered beyond recognition (reformulation) and that the upcoming fragrances will be completely synthesized or "bare", with no soul.
If this practice escalates, do you think it is possible to create diversified and nuanced compositions that are on a par with great classics of yesterday ?

Sandrine: Some restrictions are already excessive; especially concerning some natural raw materials. This is also due to the Colipa and the Reach restrictions, you know. The situation will be harder for a perfumer who had known perfumery in a previous era with less restrictions than for a young perfumer who never used or smelt opoponax, for example. The challenge is of course harder to face.

PerfumeShrine: It was with great interest that we learn you have studied under Edmond Roudnitska. His course has been monumental for a simple reason: not one mis-step on the way (Even his commercially unsuccessful Dior Dior has striken me with the beauty of its composition). What is the most important lesson that you have retained from him ?

Sandrine: The most important lesson.....that we know nothing! So many things left to learn, to discover, to live ….

PerfumeShrine: So how can Roudnitska's vision be translated into today's world?

Sandrine: It would have to be another world.

PerfumeShrine: Sad thought, that one. Still, is there a fragrance or a perfumer you greatly admire today?

Sandrine: As regards perfumers, I greatly admire Isabelle Doyen, Olivia Giacobetti, Jean-Claude Ellena and Christine Nagel's oeuvre. As for specific fragrances, I admire today “For Her” from Narcisso Rodriguez and “Terre d’Hermès”.

PerfumeShrine: Very interesting! Sandrine, you’re a Caledonian by birth, residing in New Caledonia instead of some fashionable metropolis such as Paris, Milan or New York city. Do you believe this gives you another perspective concerning your art?

Sandrine: Yes, it does! I am connected with my roots. I feel more beaming or blooming and I am more serene. If something is wrong inside of you then you won’t create with harmony. You can not cheat with perfume authoring. States of mind come to light in perfume authoring. Bad moods are forbidden. Moreover, New Caledonia with its nature and ethnic groups is a mine of inspiration for me.

PerfumeShrine: And a suggestion, more than a question: Perhaps you might be interested in recreating the ancient Chypre recipes of the island of Cyprus and the islands on the Aegean next, as an historical project for the archaeological museum in Greece. What do you think ?

Sandrine: I would love it! I would really, really love it!! Do you think that it is doable, that it can be put into action?

PerfumeShrine: I will certainly try to tag my own end of the strings I can pull, I can tell you!!
Sandrine, thank you ever so much for talking to me and for illuminating your work for our readers.

Related reading on PerfumeShrine: Manoumalia review, Interviews with Perfumers and industry Insiders, the Chypre Series

Manoumalia by Les Nez: fragrance review

Kia ora tātou!, which means "greetings" in New Caledonian, should be the line that introduces the first fragrance of 2009. As reported earlier, Manoumalia is the newest fragrance from small niche brand Les Nez (Parfums d'auteurs) from Klingnau, Switzerland, officially out in January, of which I was fortunate to get a pre-sniff.

Sandrine Videault, the perfumer of Manoumalia, herself a New Caledonian, was inspired by Wallis [1] in November 2007 in almost an ethnographical exploration to appreciate the essences that would comprise the theme based on the olfactory culture of this exotic locale. Following a documentary of RFO televized in New Caledonia, Malia, a native woman, offered to show Sandrine her savoir-faire of perfumes, in which Tuitui [2] , the par-excellence-Wallesian essence is the protagonist. Her name, Malia, became part of the fragrance's name.
Manou on the other hand is a tad more complicated: When visiting Ouvéa, an island of the Kanak tribe, it is expected to present a traditional gift on visiting a local family or when meeting the tribe leader: the "manou" (pronounced man-oo) and some tobacco. "Manou" is a piece of material used as a wrap around the hips, evoking other exotic uses of woven cloth in different cultures around the world: the colourful gold-threaded saris of India, the alluring sarongs of Java, or the pin-up immortalised pāreu (or pareos) of Tahiti.
What's intriguing me greatly however is a fleeting memory of the "Code of Manou" from my early university days while assisting a Sanskrit professor write up a treatise on etymological parallels to ancient Greek. Part of the earliest Vedic writing (12th century BC), the "Code of Manou" is according to Alexander del Mar ~a 19th century coin historian, all but forgotten by historians, if not by history itself~ who, intent on claiming that ancient Indian scriptures reference coinage in the Indus valley before anyplace else, etymologically tied Manou with lawgivers Mene of Egypt and Minos of Crete. Although the claim is weakened by lack of concrete archeological evidence, the mention of Dharana, a coinage, coming from the verb Dhri (=to hold) instigated inadverted fascination in me: The ancient Greek coin of δραχμή/drachma would therefore be coming from the Indian root Drax (=handful)!

Should we then approach Manoumalia as the gift to Malia or the gift by Malia? Or perhaps the wrap of Malia, in which the sum of her aromatic journeys has been contained? Or yet still a handful of Malia's spiritual substance in the form of a fragrance to be used on one's person? It is always enjoyable to ponder on the onomastics of a perfume, allowing me to effortlessly slip into reverie.

The tradition of the Wallisians is richly steeped into the preparation of fragrant potions. Bracelets and necklaces (such as leis) are made through weaving intoxicating blossoms; spices such as the dusty yellow of curcuma is used to paint the body; sandalwood dust is made into a thick paste for treating and colouring the hair. Tutui [2] is comparable to importance to what tiare is to Tahitians. To Wallisians being illeterate in the language of scent is akin to being unknowledgable in the wiles of attraction and almost close to being a social pariah! Intepreting this culture into a single fragrance seems impossible and in fact would not be wise. Therefore Manoumalia focused in bringing some aspects of it into a modernised, westernised fragrance that can be appreciated by perfume lovers of a certain niche.

The Manoumalia heart is sketched around Fragrea Berteriana [3], a bushy shrub growing to tree-like proportions with intoxicatingly scented flowers which are traditionally strung into leis. The Polynesians are long known to make a perfume by macerating the flowers into coconut oil. The Hawaiian name for fragrea, pua kenikeni, translates roughly to "ten cents flower" or "coin flower", thus named because of the cost per flower at one time. (You can even buy your own seeds and grow it from scratch!)


One of the last students of Edmond Roudnitska, Sandrine Videault is best known for her historical fragrances (such as her Kyphi recreation for the Cairo museum in 2002) and olfactive shows. Previous fragrances composed by her include Ambre Indien by Esteban and La Rose de Carole Bouquet for Truffault, Paris.

Mentioning Roudnitska in the same breath as a floral fragrance, one would expect an affinity for green touches allied to subtle chypré qualities. And yet I only have to smell the drydown of Manoumalia to draw different conclusions. The sparseness of formula seems to be there because byzantine plots have been eschewed in favour of a streamlined approach. But the radiance of its huge floral heart along with a butyric touch (that recalls chamomille to me) conspire to evoke some aspects of Fracas. The strange mixture of powder, burnt wood and rubber which seems to be at the core of the latter reverberates through this floral as well. I am hypothesizing that there might be inclusion of aldehyde C18 (technically gamma-nonalactone) for its unctuous, coconutty, milky, soft tropical quality too. The Fauvist approach of Cellier, who also favoured streamlined compositions, is not as jarringly evident in Sandrine's work here, nevertheless. The composition is softer, warmer, making it less monumental but more approachable by many.
Although tiare has been a darling among teen celebritoids in such permutations as Monyette, Paris and Coquette Tropique (by the same brand), Manoumalia rises above them to the level of Intense Tiare by Montale, a fragrance richly redolent of monoï (tiare petals macerating in coconut oil) ~although I am not suggesting they smell the same. The almost fruity jasmine-y intensity of ylang-ylang never fails to make my mind fly to warm tropical paradises in the midst of winter cold, but it is the earthy unrooted vetiver that provides a grounding touch like immersing my hands into a bag of uprooted bulbs. (Vetiver is much more apparent when the fragrance is sprayed on skin than on a mouillette, please note).
A subtle vanillic-woody underpinning undulates out of the richness of the floral-woody chord of Manoumalia remaining for a while on the skin as a discreet memento of a journey to the South Pacific.

Notes for Les Nez Manoumalia :
Fagrea[3], vetiver, tiare, sandalwood dust, ylang ylang, amber accord.

Manoumalia will be available in a 50ml bottle directly through the Les Nez site starting sometime in January, as well as at Luckyscent, Aus Liebe Zum Duft, and Cale.it

[1]Wallis and Futuna is a Polynesian French island territory (but not belonging to, or even contiguous with, French Polynesia) in the South Pacific between Fiji and Samoa.
[2]Tuitui is a plant of the family Euphorbiaceae, commonly known as Candlenut/Varnish Tree (Lichtnussbaum in German) with white flowers in a shape like a cross between orange blossom and jasmine which is used mainly for the nuts and the oil distilled from them.
[3]Fagraea is a plant endimic to the South Seas islands, belonging to the family Loganiaceae, one species of which is the famous fagraea berteriana (pua kenikeni/Perfume Flower Tree) abundant in Maui.

In the interests of disclosure, I got sent a free sample of Manoumalia through the Les Nez give-away of samples during the last forthnight of December.
Pics copyrighted by Les Nez, used by permission

Manoumalia: new fragrance by Les Nez (Parfums d'Auteurs)

A new fragrance by niche brand Les Nez (the Noses) is scheduled for January, called Manoumalia. Les Nez is a small Suisse brand which has released such esoterically-named perfumes as Let me Play the Lion, L'Antimatiere and The Unicorn Spell, masterminded by Isabelle Doyen. Comparatively, the cryptic Manoumalia name is less out there or fairy-tale like, although its concept reads like a high-seas adventure from the times when captain Cook was crossing the South Seas in search of exotic, unknown territories. Such were the lengths to which Sandrine Videault, the perfumer of the latest fragrance, went in November 2007 to appreciate the essences that would comprise what would essentially be a theme on the olfactory culture of Wallis. Wallis and Futuna, officially the Territory of Wallis and Futuna Islands is a Polynesian French island territory (but not belonging to, or even contiguous with, French Polynesia) in the South Pacific between Fiji and Samoa. (Since 2003 Wallis and Futuna has been a French overseas collectivity (collectivité d'outre-mer/COM).

One of the last students of Edmond Roudnitska, Sandrine Videault became interested in perfumery ever since she read Que Sais-je: Le Parfum, the now out-of-print edition penned by Roudnitska. Best known for her historical fragrances (such as her Kyphi recreation for the Cairo museum in 2002) and olfactive shows. Previous fragrance composed by her include Ambre Indien by Esteban and La Rose de Carole Bouquet for Truffault, Paris. Her olfactive illustrations include « L’Ecume des Sens », after a text from Boris Vian (Cité de la Villette, Paris), « Afrikabrak dans tous les Sens », after the sculptures of Hervé Di Rosa (Musée en Herbe, Paris) while she orchestrated the olfactive shows « Le Cantique des Sens », Palais des Congrès, Paris « La Beauté de l’Egypte ancienne » (for SEPHORA Champs-Elysées, Paris) and « Les Bulles Métalliques », Foire Internationale des Arts Contemporains (F.I.A.C), Paris.[1]

She elaborated to us how the importance of olfaction to the Polynesians, quite strong socially as well as spiritually (the same way dance and song are as well) has been an inspiration since she was a young girl. The Wallisians, making their own fragrance the ancient way, thus effortlessly entered the universe of cultures focused around smells in Sandrine's mind (as she comes from the isles of the South Pacific she was always in close proximity), much like the Egyptians, the Tunisians and the residents of Morocco. The Taihitians already have the monoi as their emblem, so it was only a matter of time till the Wallisians got their own share of recognition! The idea was therefore there, but Sandrine needed the incentive, the fuse that would set fire to the passion of composing a fragrance inspired by Wallis: the place where without a sensory, and specifically olfactory, training a man -and even more, a woman!- is invisible.
Following a documentary of RFO televized in New Caledonia, Malia, a native woman, offered to show Sandrine her savoir-faire of perfumes and became the open door, the gift-bearer that crystalised this idea and introduced Sandrine to their secret world. Sandrine's aim and ambition became to pay homage to the culture she came to know without betraying its richness. This could not be done in a mere reconstitution or even interpretation of Tuitui[2], the par excellence Wallesian essence ~there needed to exist a dialogue of different elements: of sandalwood, used to colour the hair, of spices (like curcuma) used to colour the body, of scent via the medium of jewels (bracelets or necklaces), of vetiver, of flowers like Fagrea[3] (which to Wallisians is comparable to what tiare is to Tahitians), ylang ylang and indeed tiare. Thus a modern, occidentally-oriented perfume emerged, which was talking about a culture hailing from the South Seas: a woody floral amber, Manoumalia.

The announced notes of Manoumalia are: Fagrea, vetiver, tiare, sandal, ylang ylang, amber accord.
If you sign up for the newletter on the Les Nez website, you can get a free sample of the new Manoumalia fragrance. I am already expecting it and will report back with a full-on review in due time.

[1] List of olfactive installations via 1000fragrances.
[2]Tuitui is a plant of the family Euphorbiaceae, commonly known as Candlenut/Varnish Tree (Lichtnussbaum in German) with white flowers in a shape like a cross between orange blossom and jasmine which is used mainly for the nuts and the oil distilled from them.
[3]Fagraea is a plant endimic to the South Seas islands, belonging to the family Loganiaceae, one species of which is the famous fagraea berteroana (pua kenikeni) abundant in Maui.

Pics copyrighted by Les Nez, reproduced by permission