Invisible Landscapes : Signs and Illusions in the Perfumery of Jean-Claude Ellena

Abstract: This study explores the potential of semiotics in the non-visual realm of perfumery, focusing on the work of French perfumer Jean-Claude Ellena. Utilizing Roland Barthes’ three levels of signification as a theoretical framework – as presented in his essay Rhétorique de l’image – it analyzes the linguistic, denotative and connotative aspects of three perfumes created by Ellena for the French luxury house Hermès: Un Jardin en Méditerranée, Un Jardin sur le Nil and Un Jardin Après la Mousson. These fragrances serve as case studies, revealing how Ellena consciously utilizes perfumery raw materials as signifiers, in order to create olfactive illusions corresponding to a given signified. The study argues that these illusions serve as a primary communicative force within perfumery, transcending the sum of their individual parts to evoke olfactory imagery and symbolic meanings. Drawing on Ellena’s method, the analysis highlights the interplay between textual and olfactory meaning-making, engaging the user in an immersive narrative experience. This study aims to contribute to the broader academic discourse surrounding the sensory arts, underlining the potential of semiotics in understanding the symbolic narratives inherent in the art of perfumery.