Les Liquides Imaginaires Sancti, Fortis, Tumultu (2011): Where Photography & Perfumery Meet {New Fragrances - Limited Editions}

A new, limited-edition collection of three perfumes titled Sancti, Fortis and Tumultu in the equally new Les Liquides Imaginaires series (The Imaginary Liquids) have been released under the art direction of French designer Philippe Di Méo, the founder of RESO, a multidesign agency.

For Di Méo, this is a comeback in the world of creative perfumery. Clearly obsessed, he is once again thinking in terms of a triptych of scents and around the symbolism of water, while pushing the boundaries of classic perfumery. Last time we heard of his perfume ideas, they were called Larmes, Salive and Sueur (Tears, Saliva, Sweat.)...

This time, Les Liquides Imaginaires are the result of a collaboration with German photographer Daniel Sannwald who brings his surreal brand of inspiration. As Di Méo puts it, "Daniel brought out the human incarnation of the imaginary liquid hidden within my jars." Also part of the project are two perfumers from Givaudan, Sonia Constant, who composed Sancti and Fortis, and Jacques Huclier, who created Tumultu.

"Les Liquides Imaginaires are scented symbolic eaux endowed with emotional power and something of the sacred. Beneficial, angelic, erotic or esoteric, they aromatize, fragrance, cleanse, or perfume. These olfactory messages are loaded ad infinitum into the imagination via liquid."

 The art project takes on the tone of a manifesto,

"The market has established itself with a desire to entice the largest part of the world. The charm has left, the scent has lost its magic, and its imagination is no longer anything more than a base object of desire. It has left behind unforgettable trembling and mythical fragrance, but nowadays what has happened to one of its most fundamental factors: intoxication!"

No perfumes notes are given, but rather key words and moods. WWD however reports that Sancti is based on vetiver, Fortis on oud, Tumultu on sandalwood.

The glass flacons are by Atelier Norline while the pewter amphorae are by Orfèvrerie d'Anjou. There are 40 copies of the 250 ml flacons for each scent, priced at 200€, and 12 copies of the amphorae for each scent priced at 3000€.

Until October 20, 2011, you can visit them at the hotel La Maison designed by Maison Martin Margiela at the Maison des Centraliens. They can also be purchased via lesliquidesimaginaires.com