An unconventional floral
Aesop’s fourth fragrance, Rōzu Eau de Parfum, was inspired by the celebrated French modernist designer Charlotte Perriand—who was deeply committed to improving the lives of others through intelligent, functional design.
Perriand was both resolutely of the machine age while remaining sympathetic to handcrafted techniques and natural materials. Equally, Rōzu embodies its own subtle olfactory paradoxes—bringing together warm, complex florals and lighter metallic highlights of green citrus and wood. The fragrance was formulated in partnership with long-term Aesop collaborator Barnabé Fillion.
Every facet of Rōzu embodies a link to Perriand’s life and work. Textural opening notes allude to the rose created in her honour by Japan’s Wabara nursery in consultation with her daughter, Pernette Perriand-Barsac. In tandem, the crisp notes of Shiso reference the bracing alpine environments she explored at every opportunity. A heart of complementary florals, spices, and Guaiacwood speak to her nature that was both tender and tenacious. Powdery base notes of Vetiver Extract, Patchouli, and Myrrh recall the men’s colognes she customarily wore.
Dr Kate Forbes, Aesop’s Director of Innovation, says, ‘With Rōzu, we have again explored alternative techniques in order to achieve an intense, highly nuanced fragrance that brings a new category to the Aesop range. It is a pleasure and a privilege to work with Barnabé Fillion once more, and to express our shared esteem for Charlotte Perriand through this remarkable formulation.
Fillion, also the perfumer behind Marrakech Intense, Hwyl, and Aesop’s collection of Aromatique Room Sprays, worked closely with the Perriand family, spending time at Perriand’s loft apartment in Paris and travelling to Japan with her daughter Pernette Perriand-Barsac and her husband, the photographer Jacques Barsac.
Charlotte Perriand’s life spanned almost the entirety of the twentieth century, from 1903 to 1999. Her work was influenced by her extensive travels, her egalitarianism, a love of the elemental outdoors and, above all, modernism.
Rōzu Eau de Parfum is packaged in a 50mL glass bottle, encased in an elegant box featuring an image from Perriand’s photographic archives. It is available at all Aesop signature stores and counters, and at Aesop Online.
