SOURCE ADAGE
Adage means a proverb or statement that expresses a general truth, for example a thing of beauty is a joy forever.
Source Adage was founded/launched in 2015 by partners Christopher Draghi and Robert Dobay, both men deeply committed to the aesthetics and impact of art, design and lifestyle branding. Christopher was born in Connecticut and Robert is originally from Hungary, both men sharing a passion for the nature and beauty of taste and how we interact with and are influenced by it.
The concept or philosophy of aesthetics is often perceived as frivolous, the domain of the dilettante mind, but this isn’t true. Everyone has their own ideas and definitions of beauty; true, for some people it may not view if as a top priority, but be it a single object, print, painting, cushion, paint colour, lighting, room scent or a total immersion in complimentary and personally reflective rooms, spaces, hotels and transport, it is possible to achieve varying personal degrees of comforting and satisfying appreciation of beauty.
The problem has been that aesthetics, branding and lifestyle promotion is sometimes seen as unnecessary, the application of trends and coerced design over a genuine study of how we move live and love within spaces. The need for beauty is arguably a first world concern but that is only the result of over-exposure to the corrosive and flawed world of social media and influencers, who rarely have honesty or the genuine talent to discuss beauty. All of us deserve beauty in one form or another, and when we see or experience practitioners and their work, it can move and influence us profoundly.
Christopher and Robert opened a formidably beautiful store in Hudson, New York in an immaculately fitted out Greek Revival house. Source Adage has a minimalist masculine vibe, in keeping with the two men, but there is ambiguity in the smoked glass and darkness of their design language. The tones and textures are perfectly presented creating a sense of moody flair that suits the refined impression of the opulently dark home line and perfumes.
Candles and home fragrance came first. Most brands will agree that the market for scented candles is predominantly female, with guys having limited exposure to haute quality candles that aren’t necessarily mirroring an existing perfume line. The candles come in classically poured opaque black glass and a unique decagon shape, the scents exploring the American wilderness and landscapes such as Pacific Coast, Great Plains and North Atlantic. Complimenting these are more intimate portraits of room and ateliers.
A move into personal perfumes was inevitable. The guys use the phrase Perfumery Elevated to the Extraordinary, instinct versus intent. The ethos is the creation of wearable luxury, perfumes that transcend trends, delivering unique scents that still carry echoes of collective memories. It is a bold idea, other houses have fallen short, but with their wilderness wanderings and wild people-free spaces, Source Adage have tapped into an ever-present yearning for old nature, primal flora untouched by man.
Modern times have obviously witnessed a dramatic and shameful decline in the number of natural habitats across the globe. Forests burn, jungles decimated, deserts consumed, and oceans rise while marine life and coastal areas shrink. Rivers are polluted, agricultural land poisoned, skies irradiated and choked. Yet there are expanses of wilderness; the USA is enormous and coast to coast differences take in deserts, mountain ranges, grasslands, volcanic landscapes and canyons. Japan has huge arboreal regions outside the conurbations that are difficult to access, Russia, Canada, Central Europe, the Scottish Highlands and snowy Nordic forests all exist alongside the relentless pace of man and machine.
It is the original indigenous, First Nation peoples of the American wilderness that have inspired the unique names of the Source Adage perfumes while the associative American Wilderness spaces provide the materials and mood. The line consists of Aétai, Aka’ula, C’i’aan, I’Khana, Ki’lei and Monto’ac, the names taken from the languages of the First Nation peoples and providing geographical or meteorological moods.
The perfumes are atmospheric and startling, they have a raw natural sense of weathered place, tempered beautifully with thoughtfully wrought luxury. On paper there might be a little scepticism about the use of First Nation themes, paying lip service to land and heritages that have been so marginalised, but that is not the case at all; each of the perfumes is an intelligent and striking composition that has been carefully considered within the brand’s overall ethos and aspirations.
Christopher and Robert have created a brand that is supremely elegant, sleek with desirability and oozing style. Great fragrance should transport us, tapping into olfactive memories or creating new ones. It is hard to innovate in perfumery now; brands often rehash old ideas creating pseudo-vintage scents or use increasingly weird and alienating references. Over-reliance on trends and particular materials still mars imagination and it is disappointing to discover brands whose marketing rhetoric doesn’t line up with the perfumes themselves.
Source Adage is a serious line of perfumes and home fragrance, created by two guys who genuinely want their clients to be moved, intrigued and craven for their brand. On the website Christopher and Robert use the phrase Where The Intentional Meets The Instinctual, and the compositions reflect this. There is a sensation of smelling materials that feel new or used in new ways. There are lots of ingredients inspired by the suggested landscapes. Coconut, algae, smoke, ginger, pineapple, silver fir, fern, Cape Rose, wild iris, silver sage, earth and metal notes, tobacco and apple to highlight a handful.
The smoked grey glass, tactile bottle design and muted sobriety of the line is refined and compelling. There is an old European painting technique called grisaille, from the French word gris, meaning grey. It refers to works executed entirely in shades of grey and far from being dull, it is the depth of shadows and precise evocation of line that makes an impact. This interpretation could be applied to the Source Adage perfumes, in the aromatic painting of landscapes and tableaux suggested by the beautiful names and heartfelt conjuring of landscapes.