Thorsten Biehl, Biehl. Parfumkunstwerke

Thorsten Biehl is his name, owner of the niche perfume house Biehl. Parfumkunstwerke founded in 2006, initially, in Germany and after positioned also in United States. He is an experienced perfume expert who started his career in leading companies since 1987, developing a solid and outstanding background in this field across an international career influenced by New York city and also over 60 countries around the world, mainly in Europe, America and Asia. As said by his portrait, “He is a traveler.” Indeed, he is. A traveler, a business conoisseur and a very well-trained professional in perfumery who also had the key influence of his father, the great perfumer Henning Biehl.

In this interview, Thorsten Biehl tells us about Biehl’s olfactory gallery, his role as fragrance curator, the concept of perfumery as art and the future of perfumery, among other issues. Welcome to Biehl. Parfumkunstwerke interview, the perfume gallerist is here.

You have an interesting background as a fragrance professional from one of the leading companies in flavors and the perfume industry, a role desired by many professionals. Tell us about this experience and what made you decide to move to an independent niche perfume house as owner.

Thorsten Biehl: First of all, although I had many years of training and experience in the fragrance industry, I consider myself more as an perfume expert and critic, not as a perfumer. Thanks to my father, perfumer Henning Biehl, I was introduced early to the world of perfume and became the chance to work there as well. After more then 16 years working for a Haarmann & Reimer (now Symrise), I thought it was time to start something on my own. The globalization of the perfume industry was in a way the reason to start my own company: creating perfumes that are made by the best international perfumers, using the best possible raw materials, creating innovative, unique fragrances.
 
...and what are the main advantages and disadvantages in this change?

Thorsten Biehl: Advantages: Everything is different every day, less routine, more excitement. Disadvantages: a lot of risk. No risk, no fun.

Absolutely! Thorsten, one of the most captivating features in Biehl Parfumkunstwerke is the concept of "perfume artworks" (English translation for "Parfumkunstwerke" in German). When I read about it, you know that this fascinated me, an olfactory gallery with renowned  fragrance designers as Arturetto Landi and artists with such diverse olfactory styles and experiences as Patricia Choux, Mark Buxton, Egon Oelkers, Geza Schoen and Henning Biehl. If we look at your role as the role of an art gallery curator, how is the process of joining an incredible team and selecting these fragrances?

Thorsten Biehl: My role as the curator or gallerist is to find the best perfumers, ask them for their secret or hidden treasures, select the most wonderful perfumes, make it available to the consumer. The most difficult part: I have to decide which perfume deserves to be a 'kunstwerk' ( art piece). This is very hard, but it is very rewarding, too. The most risky part is, of course, that I may be the only one who loves a specific fragrance.

There is a movement in this industry that is the growth of niche perfume houses and luxury and exclusive perfume lines; consequently some perfumers have been developing some associated works with perfume houses which have aggregated these qualified noses. Since Biehl Parfumkunstwerke is a free space for fragrance artists, is your idea to join more revolutionary and radical fragrance artists, under some requirements? Tell us...



Thorsten Biehl: I will try to expand my group of perfumers slowly but surely. I will especially work together with younger, unestablished perfumers that create fresh ideas. There is no written business plan on how to expand the gallery, but I already have the contacts to the next generation of promising perfumers that would love to participate. It will be a competition between establishment and the new generation of perfume houses. The perfume lover should be the winner.
 
Great, we enjoy being winners! I see there is an issue that your scents are not for the masses, as with most of the cult fragrances.  I think it makes sense in terms of a high quality, skilled and innovative fragrance as perfume artwork, a distinctive product. In this perfumery field, the scent will not be a massive one and that is good.  However,  don't you think that an artist wishes to be recognised by a considerable audience, participating on the process of "art education?" 

I mean, someone just learning to appreciate the real art is educated to develop a new look at the artwork and have access to it;  most artists value not only being satisfied by their own artist processes, but also the chance of making people develop this "unordinary" way of contemplating and learning from art.

You own an olfactory gallery and use a strong art approach, what is your opinion about it? 

Thorsten Biehl: From my long experience in the industry, I think only a few percent of consumers select a perfume solely by its smell. The majority will follow the mainstream products of similar or "well-known" fragrances which are highly advertised. For me, the qualitative and creative aspects of a perfume are more important then the commercial success. You might say, that's easy to say when you don't sell much as most of the "niche fragrances" do, but it is the distribution, too. The rewarding aspect for the perfumers in niche perfumery is that they have a chance to show their own creation without adaptations in price and raw materials for the mass market. 

Sure! And don't you feel some responsability in educating noses, participating (in)directly in the "perfume education of the masses?"

Thorsten Biehl: It's more a pleasure than a responsibility to educate interested people to learn more about perfumery. I have various presentations to share parts of my knowledge in a very interesting and entertaining way. The audience may be sales staff of perfumeries as well as perfume fanatics and "regular consumers." There is a strong urge to know more about modern perfumery.

It is clear that niche fragrances have been become more known, in comparison to a few years ago. Nowadays, they are not popular yet, but people are looking more for this market and buying more of these perfumes. Discussing with some perfume professionals, I have realized that it seems to be a concern because the "niche" term is getting lost and, not because of the consumer habits or their better olfactory education or demand, mostly, because growth actions of some "niche" perfume houses which are creating fragrances as if they had production lines or some scents that would make no difference in their lines. 

Do  you think it is a risk for the niche perfumery principles, for a future banalization?  What is your opinion about this issue now and how do you envision it?
 
Thorsten Biehl: Niche perfumes used to be unknown, since the well-known brands were enough and had a high quality and a more selective distribution. Niche became more successful when people realized they want a product that not everyone had, they wanted exclusivity and distinction, something more personal. Nowadays the niche has improved the quality a lot, since the world’s best perfumers participate in their creation. But you are right, there are already a lot of brands which follow the “me-too” character of the mass brands. But the press and the internet community are focusing also more on the niche to find different products and stories than the typical mass products. The perfume lover of today will have to decide what brand delivers the best quality and originality. 

What is it to be radical in perfumery creation? That may be the main question of Biehl Parfumkunstwerke admirers...

Thorsten Biehl: Radical concerning the perfume creation is to try something new, use the best ingredients to find new combinations and fragrance directions. Radical is the way to select the fragrances, not to use market tests and follow other trends, but to go in new direction, bare the risk of failure again. And radical from the marketing standpoint is to show the real creators, the perfumers, instead of celebrities that form a brand, as well as minimize the visual aid and focus mainly on the fragrance.

 
I completely agree with this standpoint. Thorsten, I smelled fragrances Biehl Parfumkunstwerke Al01 and Al02 designed by Arturetto Landi and was impressed by the antagonisms between scent simplicity and complexity orchestrated in these fragrances. He is really "an opera for the nose" and the result of the scent developments is like smelling the acts of an opera: different chords, different sensorial insights. A very good work, congratulations! Since there the artist is free to create, apart from each perfumer's style, is there at least some alignment or focus on each fragrance development in order to have a diverse and rich perfumes range?

Thorsten Biehl: My direction for the perfumers was to show me their favorite ideas, something new, different, or something existing but with very high quality. But in the end, it was my job to select the fragrances I most liked. Of course, I try to select a variety of different directions, so not everything smells similar.

I realize that sensuality is one of your standards in perfume making. One of the main reasons people look for a perfume is exactly to seduce, to be noticeable and let the scent linger.  However, sensuality is something very personal to individuals.

What is the sensuality captured in your perfumery that you judge as the "ideal sensuality scent" for individuals? 

Thorsten Biehl: In my opinion, fragrance is always used to seduce. But depending on the personality and situation, there are strong differences of how it is done. Therefore there is no ideal scent for all people or occasions. And hopefully there will never be one... It's the diversity that is necessary to stay alert.
 
Amazing quote about “diversity . . . to stay alert.” There is a statement in Biehl Parfumkunstwerke that is, "Art comes from ability." Certainly, perfumery as art is a skilled artisanship and made only by real artists. This statement is very correct, but art is also a matter of artist inspiration and sensibility, and how he/she works on the pieces in a skilled manner, without losing the track of these emotions and inspirational references.

Some perfumers are amazing in making fragrances, transfering to each one of them real art elements as a source of inspiration attached to their artisanship in fragrances. Others not even if they are noses. 

The great writer E. H Gombrich in his classic book The Story of Art confirms: "There really is no such thing as Art. There are only artists." So the controversial point is finally, what is art in perfumery? Is always perfumery an art? How do we measure the art in perfumery and the artisanship value since "scent" is something so undefined and sensorial?

Moreover. what is art for someone, perhaps is not art for someone else. For example, someone can see art in Franz Marc but not in August Macke; the same may happen between perfumers and their perfumeworks. 

If the perfumery art may be by itself the own perfume artist, so how does a real artist perfumer differ from a non-artist perfumer? Give us your opinion considering the brainstorm of previous comments.

Thorsten Biehl: Very good point which is discussed very differently all over the world. For me, the art of perfume creation can only be performed by well-trained perfumers with the intention of creating something beautiful, different, new, shocking, daring, etc.  How perfume are is perceived by the beholders will and shall always be different.

Finalizing our interview, tell us about your new projects or some you are interested in sharing with us... something coming for us from Biehl Parfumkunstwerke.

Thorsten Biehl: The most important project for me personally is my olfactory gallery with raw material exhibition and regular presentations. But there is still so much work to do until it will be open for the public. I will let you know when there is news. In the meantime, I am very busy to spread the word and the current perfumes to all perfume lovers worldwide, and believe me, that is more than a full time job. There should be a new nose joining the family soon, a very promising perfumer. 

To know more about the Biehl. Parfumkunstwerke fragrances, go to the official website.

Images: biehl parfumkunstwerke,

Author: Cristiane Gonçalves (crisgonc)
Fragrantica Member

Cristiane Gonçalves (aka Cris Rosa Negra) is fragrance writer from Brazil with a multilinguistic background and education. She is self-taught in perfumery issues, owner, editor and writer of her two international blogs, Perfume da Rosa Negra (the pioneer Brazilian Perfume Blog) and El Perfume al Aire (in Spanish).

Cris's writings are highlighted at Perfumecritic.com as an active contributor writer. Cris is also a Senior Human Resources professional experienced in renowned companies and is involved in the development of the attars culture as an oriental fragrance expert/consultant.