Perfumery Intensives
Ongoing, with Spyros Drosopoulos
Locations Variable / Online
The Institute for Art and Olfaction is pleased to team up with independent perfumer Spyros Drosopoulos to offer an ongoing series of intensives; an introduction to perfumery, science, formulating, and – of course – all the materials and tips an independent perfumer could ask for.
This comprehensive overview of technical perfumery is geared to beginner and intermediate independent practitioners with scent, and will help you understand the art and science of perfumery, while enhancing your existing practice with technical knowledge.
Our intensives are designed to help independent perfumers kick their proficiency levels up a notch, and to help beginners take the dive into scent-making as a creative practice. This is accomplished through a facts-based curriculum that covers the most crucial elements of perfumery. The course will enhance your artisan, independent or experimental scent practice by showing you how to professionalize your work, while avoiding reliance on those omnipresent pre-fabricated bases. As a participant, you will learn (or re-learn) the basics and get a sense of some of the special tricks you can use to deploy your own compositional prowess, and – ultimately – rely on your own skills for a greater adeptness in formulating.
Join us!
COMING UP
Perfume Intensive with Spyros Drosopoulos
at Chateau Le Grippault, in the Loire Valley, France
Course dates: Monday 10 June to Friday 14 June
Course limited to eight people.
Minimum 5-person signup for the course to take place.
This course is sold out. Email us at hello@artandolfaction.com to be placed on the waitlist.
COSTS
Class fee: $1,800.00 for the course
We require a $150.00 deposit to hold your place. This deposit is non-refundable (unless the course cancels). You can reserve your spot with the deposit here.
Accomodation: $675.00 for accommodation in the chateau, per person.
TOTAL: $2,475.00 (including course and accomodations)
If you prefer you can arrange accommodation yourself in the nearby town of Richelieu. For questions on the details of accommodation at the chateau, see below or please contact the Chateau directly. The IAO will take care of booking rooms, so no need to book separately.
Note: There is a 45 euro daily option for food + drinks (3 meals), to be arranged directly with the Chateau. Also, the course fees above do not include transportation!
ABOUT LE GRIPPAULT
Check in: Sunday 9th June
Check out: Saturday 15th June
Château Le Grippault is a captivating 19th-century estate nestled in the heart of the Loire Valley. Immerse yourself in the world of scent as our private forest surrounds you. Throughout your stay, our eight tastefully refurbished rooms with attached bathrooms, enchanting dining room, salon, grand hall, newly renovated kitchen, and the sprawling garden and forest, will be your playground of inspiration.
Château Le Grippault stands on the outer edges of the once-majestic estate that housed the renowned Cardinal Duke Jean-Armand du Plessis, France’s first prime minister in the early 17th century. Under his rule, linRichelieu was envisioned as the “ideal city.” Beyond its historic monuments, the town beckons with charming cafes, delightful restaurants, a lively weekly market, and numerous antique shops. Indulge in the local delicacies of asparagus, wine, saffron, and truffle, all produced in the bountiful surroundings of Richelieu.
In the heart of France, centrally located in the Loire region, with the charming fortified town of Chinon at 30 minutes, adn the château’s of Azay le Rideau and Villandry at a stone’s throw, equidistant from the captivating cities of Tours (50 minutes), Poitiers (50 minutes), and Saumur (60 minutes), Richelieu is not only a treasure trove of history but also a sensory haven for aspiring perfume makers. Unveil the lesser-known aspect of this region, known as the Garden of France, as a vast national park, where expansive forests intertwine with meandering rivers, creating a tapestry that is sure to inspire your olfactory pursuits.
There are eight rooms total. Rooms are a first come first served basis.
+ 5 shared rooms (2 single beds per room)
+ 1 individual room
+ 2 rooms with double beds (for a couple)
For questions on the accommodation at the chateau see below or please contact the Chateau directly.
SCHEDULE
Mornings will be spent in instruction, and afternoons in practice.
Day 1 – Classic Fragrance Types: Chypre
Morning: We kickoff the class by exploring the materials in our palette and we do that while studying the key materials to build Chypre type formulas. The aim of session 1 is to familiarize you with the terminology, the type of materials in our pallet, the stylistic and technical choices to pay attention to and basic principles for formulation.
Afternoon: Afternoons will be spent blending the morning’s accords in our fully stocked laboratory.
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Day 2 – Classic Fragrance Types: Fougère, Cologne, Vanilla & Amber Accords
Morning: In order to ensure a good familiarity with important classical fragrance types, on day two we’ll continue to explore important fragrance families and their related materials. Today we will smell and discuss the materials relating to the fougère, cologne, vanilla, and amber families. We will also do a brief cover of some “fantasy” fragrance types.
Afternoon: Afternoons will be spent blending the morning’s accords in our fully stocked laboratory.
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Day 3 – Flowers: Part 1
Morning: Most flowers smell great, however only a few of them return good oils or absolutes, and in most cases those materials are very expensive or restricted due to allergens. For this reason, every perfumer is well served by learning to make their own reconstructions or accords. We will start our morning with an overview of materials that are present in different flowers, and how nature has organized them. We will discover common denominators between different flowers and how changing the proportions will give you a whole different flower. Also we will propose alternative materials to work with than the ones present in the actual flowers. We will start this exploration with rose, violet and iris.
Afternoon: Afternoons will be spent blending the morning’s accords in our fully stocked laboratory.
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Day 4 – Flowers: Part 2
Morning: We will continue our exploration of floral accords with a thorough analysis of the aromatic components of the so-called “white flowers” (though we prefer to use the term “hedonistic”) – including the delectable jasmine, tuberose, with an examination of gardenia and magnolia.
Afternoon: Afternoons will be spent blending the morning’s accords in our fully stocked laboratory.
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Day 5 –
Fruity Accords, Green &
Woody Notes, Textures
Morning: After the flowers, fruits. As fruit extracts are so rare, a perfumer must often rely on skill to make a good, fully-fleshed fruit reproduction. As we explore the aromatics, we will experiment with how to vary proportions to create the effect of different fruits, how to funk up or tone down a fruit aroma, and much more. Specifically, we will focus on yellow, red and tropical fruits and a fig thrown in for good measure. We will continue by covering green and woody notes. Finally, we will briefly cover some texture effects. Many materials are incorporated into a formula not for their own odor but for the effect they can elicit on the overall result. Mastering these subtle details are as important to your perfume as your formula’s star players: they give your perfume its character. We will study materials that will allow you to manipulate the texture of your perfume, its longevity, projection and much much more.
Afternoon: Afternoons will be spent blending the morning’s accords in our fully stocked laboratory.
PAST INTENSIVES
2024: WINTER SESSION, ONLINE
January / February, 2024
2023: SPRING SESSION, ONLINE
May, 2023
2022: WINTER SESSION, IN LOS ANGELES
November, 2022
2022: SUMMER SESSION, ONLINE
July, 2022
2022: WINTER SESSION, ONLINE
January, 2022
2021: SUMMER SESSION, ONLINE
June, 2021
2021: WINTER SESSION, ONLINE
February, 2021
2020: AUTUMN SESSION, ONLINE
October, 2020
2020: SUMMER SESSION, ONLINE
June, 2020
2020: WINTER SESSION IN LOS ANGELES
January, 2020
2019: SUMMER SCHOOL IN LOS ANGELES
June, 2019
2019: WINTER SESSION IN LOS ANGELES
January, 2019
2018: SUMMER SCHOOL IN SYROS, GREECE
July, 2018
