GUERLAIN’S “FLACON QUADRILOBÉ”
by LEE UFAN
GUERLAIN has just unveiled (15 October 2024) at the same time of Art Basel’s return to Paris, Lee Ufan’s take on the ‘Flacon Quadrilobé’.
Initially designed in 1908 by Baccarat, this is a new project that is extending Guerlain and Lee Ufan’s partnership, as a new chapter started in 2023 with the ‘Art & Environment Prize’.
For those of you who are familiar with Lee Ufan’s work you can reach the city of Arles and visit this new opened exhibition space in the city designed by Tadao Ando. The ‘Art & Environment Prize’ is an initiative awarding one young artist per year with a residency and show at Lee Ufan Arles. This year’s recipient was French Canadian artist Caroline Corbasson.
Good Morning Korea’ in the Land of the Morning Calm is an exhibition embracing 17 Korean artists across generations and disciplines displayed at Guerlain’s flagship boutique on Avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris, unveiled for the Art Basel Paris 2024.
According to Ann-Caroline Prazan, Guerlain’s Director of art, culture and heritage , this exhibition is a symbol of Korea: “ It’s a mix between tradition and ultramodernity. It’s peaceful and elegant on one side, while on the other, it’s very energetic and dynamic. And that’s exactly the same for Guerlain; at the maison heritage and innovation converge.”
GUERLAIN KEEPS HAVING A VISION FOR AVANT-GARDE SPIRITS
The iconic Lee Ufan, South Korean painter and philosopher is the latest artist to accept Guerlain’s annual invitation to reimagine a signature fragrance bottle from the French perfumer’s archive.
Just as poetic as Ufan’s work can be, he worked with Maison Bernardaud to craft the bottle from pure white chiselled porcelain, harmoniously accented by a daubing of green paint and a silk string around the neck and stopper.
According to Japanese Culture, the color green is a symbol of the eternal life and the rebirth. And this is exactly the starting point for ’Souvenir d’Orchidée’ – the new scent that Ufan’s bottle contains. The perfume is the result of Lee Ufan’s collaboration with Delphine Jelk, the creative director of Guerlain’s fragrances.
At the same time, pure and fresh, the fragrance features notes of blue orchids, sambac jasmine and aquatic minerals, with a heady blend of angelica,iris powder, moss and amber tincture. Jelk confesses that the making of ‘Souvenir d’Orchidée’ was a ‘four-handed process’ that started with a discussion about Ufan’s olfactory memories: ‘I envisioned him as a child in the mountains, dazzled by the beauty of an orchid.’
Only 21 numbered pieces will be made available worldwide.
“Good Morning Korea” runs through Nov. 12 at Paris flagship store.
By: Mário de Castro
@guerlain
www.leeufan-arles.org
