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Artikel: Nose-to-nose with founder Alberto Morillas
Question : When did you decide to create Mizensir? What was the initial idea behind the house, and how did the evolution from candles to fragrances come about?
AM : I founded Mizensir with the help of my wife Claudine in 1999. It all started when a friend asked me to create him a candle that smelled like a Christmas tree: he'd just bought a plastic tree that was sorely lacking in magic in his living room. With this
Question : What does the name "Mizensir" mean and why did you choose it?
AM : "Mizensir literally means "to put into wax" in French, which perfectly describes the art of capturing a fragrance in a candle. It was my family and friends who came up with the name: it sounded good with my name, Morillas, and they also noticed that you'd find "NEZ" backwards in MiZENsir... a nice nod to my craft."
Question : Do you continue to create candles today? If so, do you find it more interesting from a creative point of view to create candles or perfumes?
AM : Always! Creating is my passion. Recently, I even designed a collection around fruit, which hasn't yet been marketed. I was inspired by a still-life painting I'd seen at an auction.
Question : Do you notice echoes of the young, rebellious man who discreetly mixed formulas at Firmenich, in the way you create at Mizensir today?
AM : Yes, I don't think I've changed. When it comes to creating, I set myself no limits. I still have the same passion I had 55years ago when I started perfumery.
Question : Do your Spanish origins continue to shape your olfactory design style or influence your creative instincts?
AM : Yes, my Spanish roots are
Question : You've spent most of your life in Switzerland - a place known for its precision, nature and understated elegance. How have these values influenced your approach to perfumery and the Mizensir spirit?
AM : Switzerland gave me a lot when we arrived with my parents in the early 60s. Like my childhood in Spain, my youth in Switzerland had a profound effect on my style: the way of life, the rigor, the quietude, the punctuality and the importance given to the spoken word. As chance would have it, we settled in Geneva, where Firmenich, a great family perfume house, was located.
Mizensir is the fruit of this journey. It's a Swiss brand where everything is handcrafted in Geneva. An elegant brand, without ostentation or rebellion, simply precise, where the essential remains the quality of the fragrance: the search for balance and the quest for sincere emotion, without artifice.
Question : Mizensir marries timeless elegance with a modern sensibility. How would you define modernity in perfumery today?
AM : It's accepting to use what modernity can offer us. At the start of my career I began by learning about natural molecules as a laboratory technician. I gained a certain expertise, but I attach great importance to using new molecules, such as those derived from bio-chemistry, in my creations. They are unique and can truly reveal formulas, as well as sublimating natural ones. Modernity means accepting to evolve. Working at DSM-Firmenich, I'm lucky enough to have access to the most high-tech and exclusive molecules.
Question : Do you ever get a whiff of your first creations and feel like changing or reinterpreting them?
AM : Sometimes I forget about some of my old creations and they come back to me, or I get a whiff of it on someone. I never go back to an old creation, but sometimes I go back to the basic idea and rework on it differently.
Question : Is there a particular fragrance you've created that captures a deeply personal or intimate meaning for you?
AM : I'm attached to all my creations. They each represent a moment in my life, a time when I dedicated myself to creating. It's like asking a parent, which of his children he prefers!"
Question : After your long career, is there a raw material or note that you feel like exploring and reinventing?
AM : You know, all materials still interest and intrigue me. Even those I've known for decades can reveal something new, something unexpected. It's this passion that drives me to explore them relentlessly. Basically, this perpetual cycle of creation will never end. As long as you're a perfumer, you remain a passionate explorer, always ready to rediscover and reinvent.
Question : Throughout your career, you've created several iconic fragrances, including the groundbreaking CK One. What emotions do you feel knowing that your work has changed or shaped the lives of so many people?
AM : It's a very special emotion. Above all, I feel deeply grateful. I couldn't have anticipated its success at the time of creation, and its release was a veritable tidal wave. To know that a fragrance I created has been able to accompany the memories or life moments of so many people is an immense honor. I've never sought glory, only to convey a sincere emotion. When people tell me that a perfume has marked an era or become intimate for someone, that's the greatest reward for a perfumer. And it's a fragrance that, incidentally, enabled me to become a Master Perfumer.
Question : In your own words "a perfumer is an artist who interprets emotions."Which emotion do you think is the most difficult to translate into fragrance, and why?
AM : I'd say sadness. It's an emotion I find very difficult to translate into perfume, simply because I don't want to work with it. My role is to bring beauty, sincere emotion, but never to weigh down or darken the soul. I prefer to awaken light and joy, even in the deepest creations.
Question : What is your creative process like when you create a new fragrance? Is your approach different when you compose a fragrance for Mizensir or for other houses?
AM : My creative process always starts with a very clear emotion or image in my mind: a memory, a color, a light, an encounter. I like to start from this vision to imagine the formula. It reminds me of my first meeting with the couturier Alessandro Michele, who spoke to me of the memory of his grandmother's chamomile scent... This conversation inspired me to write Mémoire d'une Odeur for Gucci. I always compose by hand, on paper: it's an essential gesture for me, the beginning of everything. For Mizensir, it's even more personal: I'm totally free to follow my desires and my sensibility, without constraint. For other brands, I have to interpret their identity, their desires, and find a balance between my vision and theirs. But in all cases, emotion and my passion remain at the center.
Question : Jean-Paul Guerlain's portrait in Vogue was a turning point in your life. Do you ever reflect on how your career path would have been different if you hadn't stumbled upon it?
AM : Yes, I do. That article in Vogue about Jean-Paul Guerlain was a real turning point for me: it made me realize that behind a perfume there's a perfumer, and that the profession of perfumer existed, that it was possible to make a living from it. Nothing was really mapped out for me. School wasn't my thing. The only certainty I had was my desire to do something artistic.
Question : Looking back over your career - from your early days at Firmenich to the creation of Mizensir - what would you consider to be your major achievement, within the house or in your entire career as a perfumer?
AM : I don't like to look back too much. However, I can tell you that I'm happy to have been able to fulfill myself in a profession that is my passion. I feel honored by the trust Firmenich has placed in me over the years, and I'm proud of the existence of my perfume House, now run by my daughter.
Question : Since your perspective, how has the perfume industry changed over the decades? Do you think these changes have made it better or made it worse?
AM : The industry has changed a lot, that's undeniable. There's been a great democratization of perfume: today, it's accessible to a wider public, and above all there are many more brands and a huge number of product launches every year. There are also more and more new synthetic materials, giving perfumers a wider creative palette.
Question : How do you see the future of perfumery, especially at a time when the industry is dominated by fast trends and technological development?
AM : Perfumery will continue to evolve with the times. Technology offers incredible tools: new raw materials, more efficient means of production and more environmentally-friendly extraction techniques. The era of fast-moving trends is primarily the brainchild of marketing departments. But despite these developments, I remain convinced that the heart of the business will not change: it's all about emotion and human creativity.
Question : What new developments are planned at Mizensir? Can you share any upcoming projects or ideas with our readers?
AM : We've just launched Ylang Spirit this summer, a floral, solar and intense fragrance, a nod to the languor of hot summer days. You know, at Mizensir we're always full of ideas! In short, I can't reveal everything, but I can say that we're working on new creations, always with this constant desire to raise quality and offer something sincere and authentic. Refinement and elegance will remain at the heart of our approach.
Question : What advice could you share with young people who dream of becoming a perfumer in today's world?
AM : In three words: willpower, passion, hard work and patience. It's a job that takes time: to understand the materials, to find your own voice, to develop your sensitivity. You have to work hard, feel again and again, never stop learning. But above all, you have to remain sincere: not try to copy or please at all costs, but to convey true emotion. Technique is important, but it's the perfumer's soul that makes the difference.
Interview mit Alberto Morillas: Duftende Tour durch Sevilla
Sevilla, die Heimatstadt von Alberto Morillas, dem Gründer von Mizensir, ist ein Schmelztiegel verschiedener mediterraner Stile, von der islamischen Architektur bis hin zum Barock und Neoklassizi...
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