BE OPEN, the international foundation which operates in the field of design and creativity, has chosen the Botanical Garden of Brera as the amazing background of a sophisticated interdisciplinary project whose central theme is perfume.
BE OPEN decided to explore the world of fragrances by especially focusing on some historic brands which have disappeared, international excellences whose fame has decreased over the years because of a sometimes-too-aggressive global market. The foundation identified 8 lost brands which must be re branded in order to protect the experiences at the basis of production and to prompt a global virtuous circle between the producers of raw materials and perfume brands.
The production of the eight brands is assigned to several designers who reinterpreted their history and features according to their sensitivity in the section The Houses of Wonders: they acted as Art Directors for the brands in order to show that design can become a strong point for small entities requiring a new commercial life to meet the challenges of the contemporary global market.
Tord Boontje worked on the Czech brand Waldes et Spol, Fernando and Humberto Campana on Biette from France, Italian brand Bertelli has been reinterpreted by Dimore Studio whereas Swedish trio Front focused on the French brand Guyla; Spanish Jaime Hayon worked on the British brand Boissard, Lissoni Associati gave its interpretation to the American perfume house Lundborg, Jean-Marie Massaud on Bertif and finally Nendo has been dealing with Russian brand R.Koehler & Co.
Each one of the installations has inspired Gérald Ghislain, founder of Histoire de Parfums, to create a unique fragrance which could combine the visual impact of the designers' works with the historic perfumes now disappeared.
In order to highlight these academic aspects, experts in the field have been involved in the curatorship of an historic/anthropological part called A journey Through Scents introducing visitors to the most general aspects of the subject.
Finally, a special pavilion hosts the section A Vision in a Box: an imaginative showcase of different bottles designed by renowned designers inspired by the shapes which will contain the fragrance of the future. Participants include Werner Aisslinger, Analogia Project, Philippe Bestenheider, GamFratesi, LucidiPevere, Karim Mekhtigian, Mist-o, Ludovica e Roberto Palomba, Thukral&Tagra and Victor Vasilev.
The research is presented at EXPO 2015 in May with a special preview during Milan Design Week in April.