ONE PERFUME, 13 SCULPTURES

"I wish to have a clean and refreshing scent that cools me down on hot summer days, but at the same time, it takes me to a green garden even if I am in the middle of the city." A few years ago, Tereza Štětinová opened up to perfumer Jakub Hiermann during the umpteenth artistic project for the house of Pigmentarium. Jakub, who creates perfumes almost fundamentally based on his own imagination, was fascinated by the possibility of immersing himself in Teresa's vision. The possibility of being carried away by foreign inspiration and creating a fragrance carries references to Virginia Woolf's novel "The Wave" and the landscapes described in it, to the book of Genesis, Garden of Eden and the first sin. The result was a private perfume with a hint of citrus that is not used in it. But laurel, verbena, fig leaves, green apple, lily of the valley or ambergris - all together it gives an impression of a citrus scent. More than a year later, this scent became part of a Prague exhibition project completed by fragrance. The perfume impressed visitors just as strongly as the art on display. For the first time in history, the Pigmentarium brand let the vox populi decide and after an agreement with Tereza Štětinová, who enthusiastically agreed, prepared the perfume for its launch as the sixth Pigmentarium creation. After a mutual creative dialogue, the fragrance gets the name Genesis. Work preparations were in full swing for autumn 2021.

The launch of the new scent was set for the beginning of May 2022, and an exhibition of Teresa's works was chosen as the program of the premiere event to take place in Paris. The space referring to the Pigmentarium brand roots was the exhibition area of the local Czech Center located in the middle of the artistic Saint-Germain-des-Prés district. The project took on a completely different dimension with the announcement that all the works presented in Paris were freshly new. What was originally the perfumer's inspiration for perfume creation, has been taken up by the sculptor as a new theme. She translated the story of the beginning, the water level variability and the energy of the waves into stone. Almost half a year of work on thirteen new objects gives birth to the Genesis collection. However, Tereza Štětinová is missing from the photos from her Paris May exhibition. Just a few days before her exhibition launch, she gave birth to her son František. She transferred the energy and emotions of the last months into her sculptures.

GENESIS PREMIERE

​May 12th, 2022, a sunny day in Paris at 10 am - the city has just awakened. Above the quiet and elegant Avenue Charles Floquet a light breeze is moving the already green leaves of the trees. Just here, a few steps away from the majestic Eiffel Tower the first official presentation of the GENESIS perfume will take place in a couple of moments. The event is very intimate due to a limited number of invited guests and it is indeed of great importance for PIGMENTARIUM. Although the perfume house is introducing a new perfume already to the fashion and design scene in Paris for the second time, this occasion is still a special premiere with the official presentation to prominent journalists and influential figures of artistic fields. Once passing the black and gold gate guests symbolically are entering Czech soil: Thanks to the generous and continuous support of HE Mr. Michael Fleischman, the Czech Ambassador to France, the presentation on this occasion can be held at the beautiful Czech embassy which is established in the former residence of the Princess de Ligne. The perfume arrived in Paris accompanied by a collection of thirteen sculptures which Tereza Štětinová has created on the same inspiration base as the perfume itself.  One of the sculptures, which looks like a tiny sea wave but made out of marble, floats between the gold-decorated walls of the embassy parlour, based on thin metal legs, way above the opulently decorated carpet. On its top is the new Genesis perfume bottle with a slightly greenish liquid. Like the tones of a harp, a clean, refreshing scent is floating through the room and moves further towards the garden through a glass door.  Among the guests of PIGMENTARIUM are journalists from magazines such as Marie Claire, L’Officiel but also the extravagant Fucking Young.  The most respected professional olfactory magazine NEZ is also represented.  In Moser crystal glasses the French champagne sparkles, the local world meets the global and the scent of Genesis begins to provide its story.


PIGMENTARIUM X TEREZA ŠTĚTINOVÁ

The movement of water is the trademark of the collection of Genesis sculptures. This collection of mostly marble sculptures depicting the element of water, is presented to the public for the very  first time in a gallery space on Rue Bonaparte 18, directly in the heart of the Saint-Germain-des-Prés art district in Paris. The pop-up  exhibition is part of the global launch of the GENESIS perfume with which the sculptures together  form a wholesome story and unified message. This premiere is probably the only occasion when the ensemble can be seen together as a whole. At the end of the exhibition individual pieces diverge into separate exhibitions or to private collections. From small statues to a large monument the works spread in a two-storey space scented with the Genesis perfume. The scent complements the statues - which in turn embody the scent. The clear connection of both works of art and creativity is transported to the viewers in one amazing olfactory experience. The opening for all visitors - invited guests but also interested by-passers - starts at 6 p.m.  The exhibition setup frequently changes and the usual white box of the exhibition hall is flooded by green light, the colour that characterises the new Genesis perfume.  Max Sokolinski as the DJ of the event throws thunders of stimulating music into the room and the art works become sometimes invisible within the sea of guests. Photographers and models mix with art lovers and friends of Pigmentarium not only from Paris and Prague. The energetic meeting stretches into the night in which the refreshing scent of the Genesis perfume and three hundred negroni cocktails have dispersed. 

RETURN

The 24th and 25th of May belonged to Prague and Bratislava. The monumental sugar palace in the center of Prague, transformed this year into a luxurious and sophisticated Andaz hotel, hides a unique space - a suite in which actress Adina Mandlová lived before her emigration in 1948. In these exact rooms, and even in the original bedroom of the famous star from Czech film noir era, the Genesis perfume experienced its Prague premiere. Three Genesis statues decorated the unique interior and the new form of Pigmentarium perfume boxes were presented for the first time in the mahogany cabinets. The joyful and friendly environment with tasty fig specialities served accompanied by gin-based cocktails by Monkey47 - now almost inevitable for all Pigmentarium events. The next day, the last artwork was revealed. In Bratislava, the Genesis project became a thoughtful part of the Residency exhibition organized by the local renowned platform Virvar in the Kunsthalle Bratislava. A completely new addition to the Genesis sculpture exhibition was the premiere screening of the short experimental film called Genesis by Anežka Horová, underlined by the olfactory experience of Genesis perfume. In the meantime, some of the art works have been already displayed in exclusive concept stores, such as Ingredients and Myskino in Prague or Mood Scent Bar in Warsaw.