The visionary Jonathan Anderson has finally done what he has always set out to do for Loewe—bring an olfactory dimension to the Spanish luxury leather goods house. Tracing an honeyed sketch of his childhood growing up in and around gardens, Anderson and his collaborators also drew on the meticulous, ethereal botanical photographs, prints, and notes from trailblazing nineteenth century artists like Kazuma Ogama and Anna Atkins.
Fascinated by the innate human propensity to connect with and attempt to understand nature, he was inspired to weave sentiment with science, making the fragrance line “part Victorian botanical garden, part apothecary.” The result is a bouquet of 11 aromatic scents, based on flora both local and exotic: honeysuckle, beetroot, juniper berry, tomato leaves, coriander, liquorice, scent of marihuana, luscious pea, oregano, cypress balls, and ivy.
The rustic, earthy delights of a vegetable garden are inherently sewn into a design that evokes a bygone era. A ribbed candle ceramic design based on a fifth-century Greek mug that Anderson picked up at an auction a few years ago can be spotted amongst the collection, as can a candelabra silhouette derived from the heyday of Louis XIV’s reign over France.
He brought the line to life with the help of Loewe’s in-house perfumer Nuria Cruelles and photographer Erwan Frotin. Together, they created a dialogue between scent and source, inspiration and product, and a symbiotic garland of rhythmic purity. Rattan diffusers sprout above pyknic candles, and home fragrance sprays capped with leather tags stand proudly alongside soaps with matching key notes.
The charm of the fragrance anthology comes not only from its grounded key notes, but also from its unquestionable modernity. It’s as Anderson himself said of the collection: “Craft knows no historic border.”
Prices for Loewe’s home scents start at $125 for candles, $120 for wax candle holders, $140 for home fragrances, and $140 for scented rattan diffusers. The full collection is available now at Paragon, on their main site, and on their dedicated perfume page. Find the anthology in the new flagship Casa Loewe boutique when it opens at ION later this fall.
