GRASSE, France – The air in the Grasse countryside still carries the scent of Christian Dior’s paradise — forest, roses, jasmine and cooler Provencal air.
At the designer’s former home Château de La Colle Noire, Christian Dior Parfums hosted an intimate dinner on Tuesday to mark the launch of Dior Paradise, the latest fragrance in La Collection Privée Dior, created by Francis Kurkdjian.
The event took place at Dior’s former residence and personal hideaway, completely restored and now used by the house for select presentations, which also includes extensive gardens.
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Guests were whisked from Cannes to the estate, and treated to an herb garden tour by Kurkdjian, Champagne on the terrasse before a lavish meal based on re-creations of Mr. Dior’s favorite dishes.
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Kurkdjian, Dior Perfume creation director, said the project developed directly from his familiarity with the estate and its archives.
“The agenda for launching perfume nowadays is — there’s a pace that is very close to fashion,” he said, comparing the schedule of planning of rollouts to the many global fashion weeks. Fragrances are increasingly shaped by recurring themes tied to seasons, destinations, and specific dates or occasions, he said.
When the idea for Dior Paradise came along, instead of looking to sun and sea and beaches, he knew he wanted to base it on Dior’s personal forested retreat.
“It was a quick win,” he said, noting that he spends significant time in the South of France and within Dior’s heritage spaces throughout the year. “It’s a place I really love, and it is a place I come once or twice a month.”
“When you join Dior, you have to know the history almost by heart and better than anyone else, because from the history of the maison, you get codes, from the code you define a frame, from the frame it’s a creative playground,” he said. He noted he spent weeks there when he joined the house four-and-a-half years ago, and that Dior creative director Jonathan Anderson has spent significant time there since he joined the house last year.
Kurkdjian said his approach was guided by Dior’s history and archives. “When you know that you have to create something, your mind starts to process,” he said. For Dior Paradise, he pointed to several recurring elements, such as the estate’s almond trees, which formed his concept.
When guests came inside due to the windy weather, “House of Guinness” star Anthony Boyle revealed that he came as a plus-one with Jay Lycurgo. The two were prepping for their premiere the next day, of the film “I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning.”
“I had a suit at the bottom of my suitcase,” he joked, so he threw it on and made it in time for the dinner.
He was not nervous ahead of his premiere — or not quite yet at least.
“I have a really difficult time thinking about things when they haven’t happened yet. It’s usually when it’s happening it will hit me. So when the titles are rolling, moments before the film is about to start, I’ll get really nervous and realize I should have dealt with my emotions better.
“I’m really bad at object permanence,” he said. “But I’m very good at living in the moment.”
Co-star Lycurgo recalled that his first Dior purchase was when he worked as a shop assistant at Selfridges in London. Then he realized the price was above his budget, but he fell in love with the suit and took it home anyway.
Following the dinner, Kurkdjian brought out chef Denis Fetisson and his team for a round of applause for the meal filled with fresh flowers from the garden.
Kurkdjian said the atmosphere of the house remains significant to the creative process.
“As soon as you pass the hall and see the desk, the guest book, the rooms, you feel his spirit,” he said, showing off pages signed by Dior’s personal friends such as Marc Chagall. He also said there is a legend that a ghost haunts the property.
The dinner was attended by Dior ambassadors including Lingling Kwon and Jasper Liu, alongside Alexa Chung, “White Lotus” star Charlotte Le Bon, Mamadou Sidibé, Mina Kavani, Nadine Labaki, Paul Kircher, Susanne Wuest and French singer Vanille.