With all that’s going on in our world, no doubt 2025 will be one for the history books. We live in turbulent and nasty times, so it’s with a measure of relief that I’m able to focus on something that almost seems frivolous: the centenary of Art Deco and, more specifically, Art Deco perfumery.
I’ve also included some visual examples of Art Deco architecture in Johannesburg. South Africa adopted the style enthusiastically and although many buildings have been lost over the years due to the pressures of progress and urban decline, there’s still plenty to admire.
CHARACTERISTICS OF ART DECO
Although it had already been gathering momentum for several years, the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris in 1925 is officially regarded as the global launch of the style.
So what is Art Deco? Let’s use these definitions from Britannica and Sotheby’s, respectively, as starting points:
“Art Deco was a design style of the 1920s and ’30s characterised especially by sleek geometric or stylised forms and by the use of manufactured materials.”
“The visual embodiment of modernist principles, Art Deco celebrated the triumph of technology and the sleek, liberating forms of the machine age, its emphasis on structure responding to a widespread desire for order in the wake of chaos.”
It is most often associated with architecture and Miami, but Art Deco was expressed in numerous ways, from fashion and design to jewellery and art, with many countries having their own variations on the theme. It’s for this reason that it’s often called “the first international style”.
More than a style, though, Art Deco encompassed a state of mind. With its love of modernity and progress, it’s synonymous with the optimism, glamour and Flapper liberation of the Roaring Twenties. A time of faith in change and all that technology would bring. How different things feel today…
For all its modernity, however, Art Deco was the ultimate cultural appropriater and drew on numerous and diverse influences, including Ancient Egypt and African art.
ART DECO AND PERFUMERY
You can’t talk about Art Deco and perfumery without mentioning Lalique and Baccarat bottles. The examples I’ve included below are more easily accessible and won’t entail selling your granny.
CHANEL NO 5 (ERNEST BEAUX)
Launched in 1921, Chanel No 5 was “conspicuously absent” at the 1925 Expo, according to Tilar J Mazzeo in her book The Secret of No 5, whereas Guerlain Shalimar (see below) made the most of it.
Nevertheless, the bottle (modified over the decades) displays the clean, geometric lines of Art Deco. And perfumer Ernest Beaux’s use of aldehydes was perfectly in tune with the innovative spirit of the age.
GUERLAIN SHALIMAR (JACQUES GUERLAIN)
It’s not news that the icon celebrates its century in production in 2025. What’s perhaps less known is that perfumer Jacques Guerlain’s brother Raymond Guerlain’s design for the Shalimar bottle bagged a first prize at the Paris Exhibition. (FYI: Raymond Guerlain’s design for the equally iconic 1912 L’Heure Bleue bottle has the curves of Art Nouveau.)
To celebrate the centenary of the OG, the recently released Guerlain Shalimar L’Essence has been given Art Deco-influenced typography.
ACQUA DI PARMA COLONIA
What we now recognise as the ADP bottle has Art Deco written all over it. From what I can glean off the Net (AI not much use, ha!), it seems the bottle took on the style in the 1930s (the fragrance was originally launched in 1916) and is now used across the Colonia, Blu Mediterraneo and Signatures of the Sun collections.
Its design remains as timeless and elegant as the scents it houses.
ELIZABETH TAYLOR PASSION EDP
An avid Art Deco collector whose love of jewellery contributed to her legendary status, the style is clearly visible in bottle for this 1988 release, Elizabeth Taylor Passion EDT.
Before you grown “Ugh, celebrity fragrances!”, let me interject: it’s complex stuff that makes a statement with its retro animalics.
The bottle for Elizabeth Taylor Black Pearls also has the style in abundance. And Ms Taylor was always about abundance.
CLIVE CHRISTIAN ART DECO COLLECTION*
In more recent years, some fragrance brands have taken inspiration from the style and its opulent and decadent streak. A fitting example is the British brand Clive Christian’s Art Deco Collection.
It’s eye-wateringly expensive (Clive Christian always is), so best get into Roaring Twenties mode and who cares about the upcoming financial crash of the Great Depression. At least, you’ll smell fabulous with Clive Christian Blonde Amber, Amberwood and the 2018 release Cypress (featured here).
GIVE ME NAMES
Without being a name-dropping bore, a quick list below of people and companies who were integral to Art Deco:
Art: Tamara de Lempicka, Erté.
Furniture: Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann, Maurice Dufrêne.
Fashion: Paul Poiret, Jeanne Lanvin, Elsa Schiaparelli.
Jewellery: Fouquet, Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels.
Architecture: Auguste Perret, Raymond Hood.
*Available at Skins.
