He refuses to wear the perfumer's white coat and writes each of his formulas by hand. He owns dozens of Klein blue suits, his lucky color, and attaches as much importance to his cufflinks as to his socks, which he always buys in Rome.
Alberto Morillas is, at the dawn of his 70 years old, a contemporary dandy, the likes of which you rarely come across. Of Spanish origin, he taught himself the inner workings of perfumery in Geneva at Firmenich in the 1970s. Always loyal to this company that creates perfumes and aromas, he has created for his clients some of the most beautiful fragrances of the last forty years, such as Acqua Di Gio by Giorgio Armani, Pleasures by Estée Lauder, Flower by Kenzo and most recently Gucci Mémoire d'une Odeur.
At the same time, this father of three children created with his wife Claudine the family business Mizensir specializing in artisanal scented candles. One of them will now represent the spirit of our newspaper. Alberto Morillas took up the challenge of transcribing the identity and values of the Time in scent. This candle will be marketed from next week. The profits from the sales will be donated to Race for Water, an NGO working to protect the oceans.
If you had to sum up your childhood in two smells.
In Seville, our town house had a patio closed by a gate. I spent all my time there. Between the solar scent of orange blossom and the fresh smell of water from our well. This contrast is very present in my perfumes.
You are proof that good taste is not linked to social belonging...
When you have a sensitivity, whether you are poor or rich does not matter. My father was an epicurean. He knew how to recognize a beautiful blue or a beautiful brown. He wore two-tone shoes and put cologne in his hair. One of his first jobs when he arrived in Switzerland was as a dishwasher at the Lausanne Palace, but he proudly specified that he took care of the silverware! He always saw the positive side of things. My mother wore Femme de Rochas, she wore gloves. I was an only child, in a suit and tie, rather solitary, raised by my elderly parents and my grandmother. Very loved and pampered. My father called me "my king".
What memories do you have of your first years in Geneva?
I suffered at school. Just the smell today makes me sick. It was hard. Plus, I was the only foreign child in Onex. What saved me was that I became friends with the son of a rich family of builders who lived like in Hollywood in a flat American house, with poodles, Cadillacs, staff, a gigantic swimming pool with all sizes of swimsuits available and endless parties.
Perfumery was not a vocation, however.
I first tried the Beaux-Arts. I would never have thought of Firmenich. I would pass by its headquarters in La Jonction on the bus and would never have imagined working there one day. It is the portrait of Jean-Paul Guerlain in the Vogue from my wife Claudine who made me want to become a master perfumer. Except that you don't become one like that if you're not from Grasse or a doctoral student in chemistry. I was hired at 20 years in the scientific research department where the work consisted of studying natural essences to reconstitute them synthetically.Little by little, I learned to create formulas. One of my first notes was sold. But the road was long. I was sent to New York where I had more creative freedom and bought my first and last Cadillac. The real recognition from Firmenich came when I was named master perfumer in 1988.
What image could sum up your approach to perfume?
All my creations have something fluid, impalpable. The perfume must settle on the skin like a breath, a ray of sunshine. I seek power in lightness.
The formula for your rise?
Maybe the fact that I never set myself any limits. And that I always claimed a certain freedom to be and to create. In the 1970s, Firmenich was a universe with strict codes that I managed to overcome. I also believe that I have the ability to capture people's souls, to enter into a relationship with others, whether they are financiers or laboratory technicians. Out of a desire to be loved. I'm going to be 70 years old next year and I continue to think like a child, to not forbid myself anything, to seek emotion in everything I create.
What is it like to live with over 500 perfume creations in your head?
Lots of emotions. When I smell them in the street, I turn around to see the features, the allure, of the person wearing them. If the scent is heavy, I avoid it, for fear of coming across a red angora sweater and an overly made-up face. Sometimes, when I come across a masterpiece like Shalimar by Guerlain that is over twenty years old, I am surprised by the timelessness of perfumes. I rediscover some of my perfumes on others too. Coming home recently, I kissed my wife, in white cashmere, sitting in the living room, it was sunny. She smelled so good. I asked her what she was wearing. It was Bloom by Gucci, one of my latest creations! Beautiful perfumes always have a mysterious power of seduction.
Is applying perfume an art?
Of course. In private clinics and luxury boutiques, people almost always smell good. They know the importance of scents that perfect the look and reassure in a certain way. I particularly like the Hermessence collection by Hermès or the Bulgari fragrances that perfume everything lightly. The olfactory imprint is discreet, chic.
Some scents are more invasive than others…
Yes, at one time, overly heady perfumes were forbidden to the staff of some New York gourmet restaurants. The way we perfume ourselves says a lot about us. Women and men who no longer feel themselves are the most dangerous. They put on a ton of it. Good taste implies very delicate perfume, a spritz or two. Certain symbols like the handbag have become almost as strong as perfume. But that was not always the case! Twenty years ago, we used to wear a lot of perfume under a mink coat to go to the theater.
You have been very loyal in love, in friendship, to Firmenich, to the commune of Vandœuvres for forty years...
Maybe out of fear of insecurity. I am an anxious person deep down. Stability reassures me. I never improvise. I always go to the same shops, the same hotels and restaurants regardless of the country. These landmarks calm me down and ensure that my mind always remains open to creation. On the other hand, true friendship of the heart, I take time to offer. I am afraid of being disappointed, and if I am disappointed I can ignore the person for three generations.
Outside of your laboratory, do you seek to empty your mind or, on the contrary, surround yourself with smells?
Each room in my house in Vandœuvres is scented differently. It feels like an Orthodox church. Even the dogs smell good. I change morning and evening. I sleep scented… Always with my creations.
Does your nose help you in anything other than perfumery?
I usually put myself in zero mode to stop smelling. The only smells I can smell in spite of myself are urine and fire. And that was a lifesaver on a flight from Geneva to New York, shortly after the crash of Swissair flight 111, which I took three times a month. I was comfortably seated. We started to cross the Atlantic. Suddenly, I thought to myself, "Ouch, is it going to be my turn?" The second I saw the stewardesses take off their shoes, grab flashlights and go into the baggage hold. I signaled to them that it was coming from downstairs! They ran to see the captain. He called me and told me that Zurich wanted to speak to me. On the phone, I described what I smelled: a hairdryer overheating, no smell of smoke. They deduced that it must be the heater for the animal hold. They turned it off. The smell disappeared shortly after. The animals must have been cold!
Today, everything has a smell. More and more shops and hotels have a room fragrance. You are regularly commissioned by companies to imagine their olfactory signature, i.e. a custom-made identity fragrance. How can we explain this new volatile dimension of perfume?
For the past ten years, the development of olfactory marketing has proven that smell plays a role in the positive or negative experience of a place, whether it is a spa, a boutique or a hotel. In this sense, companies seek to associate their image with a distinctive smell that embodies their value, their history, as can be the case for a bank or a watch brand. For example, I imagined that of Bongénie stores, by combining the smell of precious woods with that of toasted bread that arouses an emotion, like a Proust madeleine.
What were your ideas for imagining the smell of “Time”?
I went in two parallel identity directions. First, its historical dimension as a reference paper newspaper, serious, reliable, with velvety woody notes that are intended to be reassuring, serene. Then, I wanted to evoke the digital, high-tech, bold and innovative era of the newspaper with a luminous beam of synthetic molecules like Calone, rather fresh, dazzling, floral.
These molecules are one of Firmenich's technological strengths.
Yes, we are the leaders in these nuggets that we keep "captive". Our palette of ingredients is unique in the world! It ranges from the most authentic natural notes to the most cutting-edge innovations in biotechnology, including synthesis sustainable; all to ensure biodegradable creations, with a lot of naturalness. They are reserved for Firmenich perfumers, we only share them with the big luxury houses that have integrated perfumers. They allow perfumery to evolve and create new emotions. The writing takes on another dimension with in particular a whole palette of aquatic, musky, sandalwood or praline notes. Without them, perfumery would have remained sad!
Proust Questionnaire
An intoxicating morning scent?
Coffee. Even though I regret the standardization of taste since the advent of capsules, I find the experience of the perfect elixir magical. But the smell of coffee already floating in the air spoils all the pleasure for me. I set the alarm for 6:30 to be the first to make one.
The musical notes that awaken your senses?
Mozart's, in all circumstances. I find the fluidity of my perfumery there.
The space in your home that you find most restorative?
The terrace of our chalet which overlooks the peaks, from the Aravis to Mont-Blanc. Unlike the valley, they pull me upwards. I like endless views, the sky, the sea, if possible with a point of reference, a cloud, a sailboat, otherwise it's the abyss.
Your worst nightmare?
The last flu that made me lose my sense of smell. After three days of depression, I found it again, I was like a dog, eyes closed, sniffing as far as possible.
A smell that bothers you?
The smell of other people's barbecues. When you're in the garden in summer, after dinner, looking at the flowers, and the neighbours are grilling sardines... it ruins my evening!
A country where you could create a new perfume?
Rajasthan. I am staying in a sumptuous palace. Even the poorest are beautiful. Women sweep the street in colorful saris. More than smells, it is emotions that inspire me, a kind of serenity, even if the horns are honking all the time, everywhere.
Profile
1950 Born in Seville, Spain.
1960 Settled with his parents in Onex, in the canton of Geneva.
1970 He joined Firmenich as a laboratory technician in the chemistry department.
1981 He created Must de Cartier, the first perfume that would mark his career.
1990 Medal of the city of Paris.
1999 With his wife Claudine, he founded the Mizensir brand in Geneva.
2003 He received the François Coty Prize for best perfumer.
2019 First perfumer to receive three Lifetime Achievement Awards, recognizing him as the perfumer of his generation.
Written by Emilie Veillon - Le Temps
The Aesthete: Alberto Morillas Talks Personal Taste
The founder of the Mizensir perfume house is also a master perfumer at Firmenich, a Swiss perfume company, where he notably created CK One and Acqua di Giò. ...
Read more
Interview with Alberto Morillas on Pardonnez-Moi, presented by Darius Rochebin
Read more
