Rubini Profumi's Founder and Creative Director, Andrea Rubini on Hyperion, journeys and destinations...
Hyperion is described as your most ambitious work to date. What do you feel makes it so?
It is the most ambitious because we wanted to represent a smell that we do not know, that of space and the metaphysical concept of inner journey that comes with it.
It is a conceptual representation of what space represents for Cristiano and me.
Why did you choose the name Hyperion for this perfume, and how does the name fit into the narrative?
The name was chosen for this perfume by Cristiano. Hyperion is the titan son of sky (Uranus) and earth (Gaea).
When I began the journey to create the concept of the perfume, sci-fi movies were a guide toward the concept that the journey into darkness metaphorically represents.
Hyperion is also the name of the spaceship we are traveling on, a name from Greek mythology, an homage to some of the films, such as the one Ridley Scott chose in Prometheus.
Travel is a familiar narrative for a fragrance concept; however, with Hyperion the destination seems to be a place of self discovery. How did you come to develop a fragrance around this idea?
We decided to create a short film with Andrei Purcarea in order to introduce the audience to the scent. Within the story of the astronaut, the Rubini shell becomes the element he finds on the journey and that leads him to change and become conscious. It is also a clear reference to Kubrick’s Monolith. It’s available on our YouTube channel and featured with a QR inside each package of HYPERION.
Is the story a reflection of perhaps a significant personal growth experience you may have had prior to or during Hyperion's development?
Hyperion is the most autobiographical perfume. The last 10 years of my life have been a journey of self-awareness and self-discovery, a journey into the inner depths where I removed what did not belong to me going slowly to discover myself.
The most iconic sci fi films project the journey of the astronaut, in isolation and solitude, into the concept of inner exploration.
Do you feel fragrance is a useful medium for self-reflection?
I love that Rubini can be disruptive, and I conceive each scent in opposition to the previous one. So after the journey into the harmonious and familiar nature of Ode, I thought of bringing people to an inhospitable and unknown place like space.
I think the task of art is to suggest a vision, to create doubt. With Hyperion it is my intention to invite people to the journey within themselves.
It may be exhausting and painful, but it provides for a sweet destination.
POST ESXENCE FOLLOW-UP QUESTION A MONTH AND A HALF LATER…
At Esxence you debuted your upcoming release, Idìlios. Is this a reference to the sweet destination mentioned in the answer to the previous question? Do you have an estimated release date for Idilios yet?
Yes, Idilios is that destination. For those who have been through the storm and found calm.
The fatigue of the journey with Hyperion melts away, the moment settles into perfect equilibrium.
We conceive it as a moment of chill, harmony. When, after having climbed the mountain, you contemplate and are happy about the journey you’ve made.
We chose the raw materials that represent for us a great hug. Intrigued by the new raw materials distilled by Mane from fruits. Three different vanilla extraits and trying to represent the blooming of osmanthus, one of my all-time favorites.
Idilios will be launched in June.