The Palais de Tokyo occupies a vast neoclassical shell on the Seine — stripped back, raw concrete, the kind of space that hums with contained energy. Since its reinvention as a contemporary art centre, it has become one of the few cultural buildings in Paris that genuinely feels alive at night. This fragrance was made in collaboration with the institution itself: an attempt to bottle the atmosphere of those wide, unfinished corridors.
In a room, it is smoky, cool, and slightly austere — the scent of a large interior that has absorbed years of work and footfall. The throw is good; it carries well across a medium to large room. Suited to an evening, or to anyone drawn to something with an edge of the industrial and the cerebral.
Cedarwood and gaïac wood form the smoky, resinous core — damp rather than dry, as though the wood has absorbed the cool air of an undercroft. Juniper adds a sharp, slightly medicinal note at the edges. Oak moss runs beneath the composition, cold and faintly mineral. Cashmeran closes the base with a warm, skin-like depth that softens the composition's harder lines without compromising them.
Scent family — Woody
Scent profile — Cedarwood, gaïac wood, juniper, oak moss, cashmeran
Perfume designed with Christophe Raynaud.
Hand-blown glass vessel, 260g. Dimensions 90 x 90 x 100mm.
Burn time 60–70 hours.
ABOUT the MAKER
Astier de Villatte
